Best of You
by Bipolar Tangerine
Summary: Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must explain to the new one why the best of her is gone. Why won't he pay attention? Kagome's POV. Better summary inside
1. Standards

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks_

_**Hi, ya'll! Well, I bet you all missed me, huh? I doubt it, actually. This story is another Inuyasha/Kagome story (I don't know why I'm so into that pairing recently). So, hope you like it. A lot of this story reminds me of myself. Mainly the pain part of it... That don't make sense. I'll shut up, now...**_

**Best of You  
**Chapter 1: Standards

I don't know why I'm giving into others so easily. I don't want therapy, nor do I need it. Sure, I refuse to talk. That's no big deal to me. Everyone's just making a bigger deal out of it than is necessary.

Because someone is different, they worry. Because I don't speak, they worry. Because I don't let them know what happened, they worry. They have to stop worrying. They'll hurt themselves worrying over a person like me.

They'll hurt me if they worry too much. They don't intend to do it, I'm sure. Human nature is to worry when something isn't normal. Voluntary mute syndrome must be abnormal. Funny, because I don't remember reading that in my text books a few years ago.

So, here I am once again, trying to do some therapy homework. A diary, they tell me to write. I don't want to have a diary, so I practically talk to myself. If I get a diary, then there's a chance people can get my words from me. My words are for me, and me alone.

I lean back in my desk, staring at the ceiling. It's almost amusing how people can panic, just because I'm not like them. I should try to act like everything is fine. It's hard to when you've been through things that you dare not repeat...

_He stood over me, trying to prove his dominance over me. I wasn't rebelling, so what dominance was there?_

I jerk my head towadrs the door as someone knocks. One of my assisstants comes in, smiling brightly.

"Hi, Kagome! I'm glad you're not spacing out like you seem to always do!" She tells me. Even though I know she means well, I don't find it funny. I know I space out, and I try not to. I don't even realize that I space out half the time. The other half, I'm on some new drug the therapist gave me. I wave to my employee, showing her that I recognize her presence.

"Well, I was going to remind you that there's a big thing going on tonight. You have the club's one year anniversary. The recipe you gave the cooks, well... They're having trouble with it and need your help." She tells me. I nod then get up. I walk to the kitchen, and begin to cook the recipe... The recipe my mother had given me when I was old enough to cook my own food...

_"Kagome, I want you to remember this recipe. It's come down all the way from great-grandma Kaede. Can you remember it for me?" My mother asked me. I nodded my head innocently. I was so unnaware of everything at the time. She began to sing a song, the song that would tell you what needed to be done in the recipe._

_"Momma, look! The dough is squishy!" I said happily. My mother smiled then took a piece of it and gave it to me._

_"It's sweet too, taste!" She encouraged. I ate it, savoring the sugar-infested flavor._

I put all the ingredients in, not even needing to look at the measurements I gave them. I finish it then give some of them a piece of the dough. Every time I make it, I share the dough. I guess it's a habbit that came along when my mother did that to me the first time I remembered it.

I place the dough in the oven and place the timer for twenty-three minutes. I look at them, and then at the instructions that I left them. I scratch off something, replacing it with another number. Everyone nods then goes to work on the food. I turn around and leave.

My mother was a wonderful woman. My father had died when I was only four. She managed to raise me and my brother while keeping up two jobs. During the summer, it was three jobs. My great grandma would always watch us on request. She was really nice to us, and spoiled us rotton.

But things change. I guess I had no way of knowing what was about to come. I should have acted differently. I took them for granted. I thought Grandma Kaede would always be there for me, and the same with my mother. I with I had known differently when I was a child. I guess it would have made things much easier for my mind to digest.

But, I can't go back and change time. I know that, even though I still wish otherwise. I know that everything happened that way, and that there's bound to be something good coming from this. Even so, my heart doesn't think that. It was a bad thing, and nothing good can come from something as severe as this.

I should stop. Dwelling on the past will only tempt me to talk to my therapist. I hate those people. They don't understand that they're trying too hard. They sound so _annoying_ when they try to get into your head. My therapist has been trying for three years to get into my head. I'm sick of listening to her endless chitter-chatter.

I sit at my desk, turning on my computer. I scan through my emails, checking to see who they're from.

I have something from my therapist. Yippee. I can't wait to talk to her overly-happy self. I look at it, and see the one thing I was hoping she'd forget. She sent me a reminder for the appointment tomorrow. I was hoping she'd forget so I'd have an excuse to skip out. Even though it's on my calender, I can still claim I'll forget.

I delete the email and then close the program. I guess I should have expected to go no matter what. If she didn't remind me, my employees would have. Unfortunately.

I know they intend to help me, but I don't want or need help. The club I run has a lot of nice people. Even though it's the most popular club during the night, everyone is really friendly during the day. I know each of their names here, and everyone knows mine. I don't act like I'm too good to talk to the janitor. In fact, he happens to be really funny. He's gotten me to smile a few times. That's a record on it's own.

My friend works at the bar, and her boyfriend works as my D.J. He's a really good one, too. Although he can become a pervert, I don't mind. He won't touch me, just his girlfriend. Before they went out, he would grab any woman's butt. Thankfully he limited it to just hers, or else I doubt they'd be together still.

She's a really nice lady. She started working at the bar because she likes to laugh. All the drunks who sit in my club stupidly entertain her. I think she tells the stories to Miroku so they can laugh at them together.

My dance club isn't just dancing. Like I said, there's a bar. I have a restaurant-type place in the back of the place. If you're coming in through the doors, it's on the left. The bar is on the other side, and the dancing takes place in the middle.

It doesn't get too loud, believe it or not. I keep the volume just right. When you're in the restuaraunt, it sounds like background music. It's not bad, either. In fact, someone liked my place a lot. They called a few weeks prior to ask us about doing something special for him. We did it, charging half the price of the supplies, and he proposed that night. It was really heart-warming.

I would've congradulated the two, but I don't speak. Someone actually said it was funny how someone who doesn't talk can run such a successful place. I think it's because I don't do speeches. I have better people do them.

So, this is normal. I don't speak, I just listen and sometimes help. I don't see anything wrong with it. My employees do, and they all threaten me. If I don't get therapy, then they say they'll strike. Worse than that, they'll probably stop being my friend. I'd hate that more than anything else.

I haven't been really good at keeping friends since I was little. I was informed that you could tell a friend anything. I told my friend what I thought of her when I was little, and she stopped talking to me. So, I stopped telling people my opinions. I lost three friends due to that in high school. Friends are just... impleasable...

_"You'll never be capable of human relationships, Kagome! You're a failure!" He shouted at me. I curled up on the floor, crying. Not from his words, I didn't understand them at the time. I was crying because he was angry at me, and I didn't understand why._

So, he predicted the future. I can't keep a relationship going long with anyone. Not when I was trying to. Now I can keep a few relationships, just as long as they don't mind my silence. Sango and Miroku are my best friends for two main reasons.

They both know sign language. I can tell them things when I want to. Sango always knows the problem on my mind. Miroku always knows how to solve it or make the feeling go away. They're better therapists than my professional therapist is. The professionals try too hard. That's why.

I still want to know the answer to this one question. Why does everyone assume that I need help? I've coped with my experiences for a lot of years on my own. I don't know exactly how many, since the years blur together right now. But I can deal with them...

Not like anyone else can. If they were to know the things that happened, they'd snap. I know that any of my friends would have gone insane from hearing some of my stories. So, I keep them inside. I don't talk to keep away from any conversations that may tempt me to say them.

That's just how it is.

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_Blah blah blah. They think they can pry into my life and just get all the information from me. They try too hard. So, on another therapy session, I just reply to questions in one of three ways. I nod, shake my head, or attempt to leave. They'll never understand what's going on, so why won't they stop trying?_

* * *

How'd that go? I think it went well, considering that I just thought of this a few days ago. Have you noticed that I've been giving all my characters bad experiences recently? 

I guess they relate to me in those ways. I will update soon, or you should hope.

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **10 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	2. Another Session

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks_

_**Another chapter. You can all get off my back now... Besides, if you're on my back about updating anymore, it'll snap in two. Then I can't work on it! Alright, I'm joking...**_

**Best of You  
**Chapter 2: Another Session

Not like anyone else can. If they were to know the things that happened, they'd snap. I know that any of my friends would have gone insane from hearing some of my stories. So, I keep them inside. I don't talk to keep away from any conversations that may tempt me to say them.

That's just how it is.

- - -

And that's how it still is, despite my therapist's opinion. Who cares what she thinks? She's too kind for her blood, let alone mine. I wish she'd stop talking. My head hurts from listening to her already. I can't wait for this session to be out.

"And, despite what you think, these sessions can help. You've made great progress since the first time we talked!" She says. I raise an eyebrow, wondering if she even remembers that to begin with. I left in the middle of her talking the first few sessions. Now I've suppressed the urge.

Although, I have to admit, that the more she talks, the more I'm tempted to do it again. I guess I shouldn't, because then she'll tell my employees and they'll get upset. Then Sango may ask what happened. And I have a really hard time not telling her my problems.

"So, how was your day? Was it nice? I'll bet it was!" She's patronizing me. If you heard her talking, you'd assume that there was a five-year-old in the room, listening to her every word. No, that's not the deal at all. There's a 27-year-old stuck in here, trying to think of anything to block her excessive talking out.

_"Kagome, you'll never match up. You're a failure to everyone. Especially your mother!" The man shouted. I looked at my mother, hoping that she'd stand up for me._

_"Mommy loves me. She says she's proud of me because I got a good letter from my teacher..." I try to explain. Rather than the man believing me like I thought, the picked me up by the neck..._

"Kagome, you're doing it again." I hear someone say. I jerk my head towards my therapist, wondering what she just said. What time is it, anyway? I look at the clock, groaning inwardly. I still have nearly 30 minutes with this woman.

"What were you thinking about, Kagome?" She asks. She's patronizing me and treating me like I'm less than her. Just because I didn't take years of college that taught me how to belittle others doesn't mean I'm less than her. Well, I guess it kind of does. I haven't had the patronize-the-patient training yet.

She must've gotten a good grade in that part of therapy school.

"Kagome, listen... You have to tell me what's going on in your head. That's the only way any of this can get better." She says. I look at the door longingly. Who said that things were bad to begin with?

_"Stop talking to me, you retarded woman."_ I say in sign language. She, of course, doesn't know sign language. So, I get on with my little victory while she attempt to guess what I just told her. She looks down at something, as if it'll provide the answers for her. I get up and leave.

I'm not going to put up with this much longer. They won't get me to talk. It'll take a miricle, and they're everything short of it. Yet, they still think that they can solve everything. They can't solve everything... No one can...

_"You think that you can help me, don't you? You think that there's a problem with me, don't you! There's nothing wrong with me, Kagome! You can't help those who don't have problems!" He blared at me._

I stare at the sidewalk as I walk back to work. I take in a deep breath then let it out. I look around, wondering if, perhaps, I should go to a bar. I've heard from some people that drinking takes your problems away.

Although, from experience, I have to say otherwise. I think that when I drink, I remember even more. One of these days, I'll get so drunk and remember so much that I'll do something... I'll hurt myself, or I'll tell someone what's going on.

The thought of talking when I'm drunk is enough to make me think of something else. Perhaps Sango will help me out, since she knows her drinks very well. Working at the bar for two years will do that for her.

I walk back to the club, taking in everything around me. Things were a lot different when I first built the club. I remember why I built it, too. I wasn't even aware of money at the time. I just wanted a place where people could feel comfortable. Where they could sit around and chat.

In my mind, I had envisioned it to be a really comfortable environment. I could come up and talk to my customers and hang out with them. I'd be able to D.J some of my own things, when I was in the mood. But, that won't always be true.

I'm an introvert, so I can't get up and just be the D.J that easily. That takes too much guts for me, and it'll require me to announce when the songs are coming on. What am I gonna do, sign language? I don't think so.

I'll never be the way I had hoped. I can't walk around my club and make small talk with them like we were old friends. All I can do is watch as the same people come in night after night. It's relieving to see that the same people are always here. They even bring friends. Then their friends come in frequently.

The down room has gotten popular, to my surprise. I thought that the club was doing well, so I purchased a lot more property and built on it. There's a small hallway in the back, right next to the bar. Go down it, and it's almost a separate building. In that section, I have the down room and the VIP area.

The down room is more of the relaxing place. You can hit a buzzer that's on a table, and someone will come to you and give you whatever you want. It'sa lot like the restuaraunt, but it's more relaxed. While the restaurant is more formal, the down room is fine to wear your torn jeans and year-old jacket to. No one minds. The down room allows smoking, too.

So, here I am. I'm back at the club, and I'm glad. The club is where I live. I had enough money for this, or a house. I didn't wanta house, since you can't get income off of it. So, there's an upstairs to my club. That is where my entire way of living is. Oh, it's locked really well, I have a code that you use to get the elevator to even come down, and then there's a lock once you get up there.

I don't want anyone in my 'home' without me knowing.There are only three people with the key. Me, Sango, and Miroku. They're the only ones who haven't attempted to steal from the club since they started working here. I figure that I can expect the same thing from them when it comes to my personal posessions.

I go up to my house, feeling somewhat hungry. Nosy people can give anyone an appetite. I walk up to the fridge, grabbing a soda from it. I don't like to eat lunch. Having anything during the mid-day is pretty rare for me...

_"You're fat! You aren't getting lunch money until you can learn to manage your weight. Don't even think about trying to sneak food! You're just a fat child, Kagome!" He taunted. I looked down at my stomach, knowing that he was right. All the other girls were slimmer and prettier, yet I was fat. How horrible..._

I set my near-full can next to the seat. I'm not thirsty right now, I guess. Besides, soda isn't good for your body or your teeth. Rots them fast, from what I hear.

I sit down on my bed, sighing. So, tomorrow will be the eighteenth. It'll be exactly three years of useless therapy. It'll be exactly fourteen years of not talking.

I guess tomorrow's going to be a big day. Should I celebrate it? Wait, I am celebrating it. It'll be exactly four years of having the club open. That's why we're doing all these preparations.

I don't know if I should be happy or not. I guess it's another day of life that I should be thankful for. But, with things like they are now, I don't know how to be thankful for life. If anything, I think I'd rather be thankful for impending death. I'll die sometime, and that's comforting... I guess...

_"You're going to live long, just so you can see the damange you've done! You've ruined your mother's life, Kagome! You're going to pay for it by living long! You'll live long and have things worse than she has them! That'll be your punishment for troubling her now!" He announced to the world. That was to be my punishment, but I didn't understand what I could have possibly done wrong._

Maybe living long isn't as good as some people chalk it up to be...

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_Sure, I have my problems, but doesn't everyone? The point is this: Stop jerking me around! Just because I don't talk, they try harder and tell me I can depend on them. Then, when we hit the three-years-of-therapy mark, I'm given up on. I'm just a project that was assigned to these people. If something is too difficult, they quit..._

* * *

Another chapter finished. So, do you like it? 

Chapters that are short are caused by one of the following. If they're _really_ short, then it's more than one: (1) I am depressed. (2) I am braindead. (3) I am tired. (4) I just cut myself and the blood is draining all my energy.

Thank you to all my reviewers! I've been depressed recently over my mother, and the reviews are helping cheer me up. If it weren't for those, I might not get back to work on Chapter 12 (I'm THAT far ahead of all you)

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **20 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	3. Traded Off

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks_

**_Here's another chapter for ya'll. Thanks so much for the reviews. You don't know how much it means to me._**

**_I'm working on chapter 13, just so you all know. There are 15 or 16 chapters, so you all have to hurry. I'm going to finish typing the story before you're on chapter 9 at this rate!_**

**Best of You  
**Chapter 3: Traded Off

I don't know if I should be happy or not. I guess it's another day of life that I should be thankful for. But, with things like they are now, I don't know how to be thankful for life. If anything, I think I'd rather be thankful for impending death. I'll die sometime, and that's comforting... I guess...

_"You're going to live long, just so you can see the damange you've done! You've ruined your mother's life, Kagome! You're going to pay for it by living long! You'll live long and have things worse than she has them! That'll be your punishment for troubling her now!" He announced to the world. That was to be my punishment, but I didn't understand what I could have possibly done wrong._

Maybe living long isn't as good as some people chalk it up to be...

- - -

Well, anniversaries are bound to go wrong in every way possible. You've heard about it through the jokes. The man always forgets, or whatever plan the two have goes terribly wrong and makes them both miserable.

It's only five in the morning and I'm already being a cynic. I can't help it, I guess. Things seem to be bound for the worst on anniversaries. Maybe that's all in my head. I could be over-exaggerating this. I check my messages, listening to my therapist's plea for me to come in today.

Does she have the urge to make a three-year-session celebration? I don't think so. Still, I have to go. Any therapy session that I don't attend is marked down on something the employees use. They're keeping record. When I get to a certain number of missed appointments, which they didn't tell me the number, then they'll strike.

So, I have to go. Lucky me! I get to be stuck with a retarded woman for the entire day!

I have better things to do. I would rather be here, in my office, working on paychecks than be with her. And, reminder, I find paychecks boring. You are doing the same thing the entire time! I don't know how other people get by with doing paychecks for their employees. It drives me up the damn walls.

I need to calm down. I'm about to have a spazz-attack right here. I take my flat soda and drink some. There, I had breakfast. Now no one downstairs can complain. As I head downstairs, I'm wondering what's going on. Usually Miroku is in here by now, looking over things to play for the night. He's not quiet when he's doing that, either.

So, I walk to the D.J stand to find him. He's there, but he has headphones on. I lean down in front of him, but he's still paying attention to the CDs in front of him and the music in his head. I lift one end of it then let it slap against his face. He jumps then looks at me, taking them off.

"Oh, hi Kagome. You scared me!" He says. I smile faintly then sit down in front of him. I look over some CDs, glancing once at him. He's confused about something.

"I don't have any ideas for types of songs tonight. It needs to be different than the normal. Something we hardly play." He says. I lean over him, getting a book that's behind his back. He's leaning against the shelfing that the collection is categlorized in, which makes it even harder.

"Didn't know you felt that way about me." He jokes. I get the book of CDs I'm looking for then set it in front of me.

_"Oh, yes. Can you HEAR the passion in my voice?"_ I ask rudely. He chuckles then looks at what I've gotten.

"Relax, Kagome. Despite what you think, things will be fine today." He says.

_"When does Sango come in?"_ I want to see how she's doing. Not by asknig, though. I listen to people and watch their body language. I can tell what subject bothers them by that alone.

"She'll be here in an hour." He says. I silently curse. That's the time I have to leave to my psyco therapy. I sigh then point to a few CDs. They're some 'stubborn-ass' CDs, which happen to be my favorite. Miroku smiles then nods.

"These will do great! How'd you know what to get?" He asks. I smile faintly, wondering the same thing.

_"Dust on the cover of the CD book."_ I sign. He smiles then pulls his headphones on again. I stand up and unplug them. The song begins to play over the speakers right next to the stage, and I smile. I like this song a lot. Hopefully, he'll play it tonight.

_Back off, I'll take you on  
Headstrong, I'll take on anyone..._

I don't know all the lyrics, but those two lines get to me. Listening to them makes me think that I can take anyone on. That I can overcome any obstacle that may ever get in my way...

_"Kagome, you're pathetic! Your mother doesn't love you, she's pretending. You're a failure! You can't even talk right! You'll never accomplish anything when you're older! You're a loser!" He shouted. I shuttered in fear, trying to keep from crying. He would get more upset if there were tears..._

Well, most days. Sometimes I don't have flashbacks and that thought stays in head long enough for me to act on it. Me acting on it includes me flipping someone off. That's as much of my opinion as I'll _voice_.

But these memories hold me back. Maybe that's why my friends requested that I do therapy. They're worried that these memories will consume me. Although I know they'll do the same thing, I tell them that the memories won't hurt me. I tell myself that the memories will only make me stronger...

If only I could be convincing enough to believe it. I know that I can't get stronger from these memories. They eat at me every time I remember _his_ harshful words. And, just like then, they cut me open.

Maybe I do need therapy. I need a type of therapy that doesn't require talking. I don't want to tell anyone about it with my own voice. I'd rather tell a stuffed animal about it through telepathy... But, that usually results in me getting so upset than I rip the stuffed animal open. Perhaps there's no way for me to get this out in the right way.

So, I drown myself. I keep myself absorbed with work. I do paychecks for the employees, no matter how boring. I go to these therapy sessions that I can't stand. I do whatever it takes to push these memories back. Because, if I didn't, then they'd ruin me. I'd have a meltdown. It happened before.

I was in therapy, and I began to remeber everything. Usually the sessions are one hour long. This one was running on the third hour. I began to remember anything at once, and couldn't breathe. It felt like my lungs just stopped working. I was having so many problems, I passed out.

When I came to, my therapist said that I had a freak asthma attack. My bronchiole tubes started to swell suddenly, and no one knew why. No one knew why, except me. My physical body reacted to my mental thoughts.

So, I won't remind myself of everything at once. I'll attempt to keep a smile on. Even that one smile that I keep on is enough to help me fight off the memories and the pain that's tied with them.

So, if my pathetic and fake smile can do that... Is there a chance that someone else's smile can do more?

_"No one will ever be able to help you! No one wants to help someone like you, Kagome! Look what you did! You ashamed your father so much, he died!" I cried at the mention of my father. I didn't know him, but everytime he came up in a conversation, I cried..._

Or is that just my wishful thinking? It has to be wishful thinking. There's no way that I'll be lucky enough to find someone who can do that. No way that I'll be able to hold onto them long enough to get the help I'm dying for. No way that they'll remain interested in helping me throughout the process.

I walk to the therapist's office, glancing around. It's really early, so the streets are prety much empty. There are a few people going around that could be taken as gangsters. They're heading back, now. With the light comes cops, and that's what they don't want.

When I finally get there, it's freezing outside. I walk in hurriedly then up to her room. My arms are still cold from the morning's air, no matter how much I try to warm them up. I just realized... I forgot to brush my hair and teeth this morning. I'll have to do that when I get back. I mean, I don't look so bad right now.

I knock on the door then step in. My therapist is sitting in her chair, as if she's been waiting forever for me to get here. I sit on the small sofa, glancing around to make sure this _is_ the right office. It is.

"Kagome, I have something to tell you." She says. Gee, what a surprise. She always has something to tell me. At least this time she warned me on when I should start blocking out her excessive talking.

"Kagome, I'm giving you to another therapist who can do better for you." She says. I look at her, my eyes widening in shock. As much as I hate this woman for being my therapist, I was comfortable with her. She never pushed me to talk any more than she had to. I stare at her in question, and she seems to know exactly what I want to know.

"I have spent three years with you and you still won't talk. You won't tell _anyone _what happened. It's too hard, so I'm going to get a different therapist for you. They'll be in this building. I'll call you tonight with the address and name. I'll even start you off with an appointment tomorrow morning." She says. I look down, the anger inside of me building at an alarming rate. Finally, I look back up at her.

_"Bitch. Just because you don't want to push through a goal you were given, you hand me off. I despise you and your preppy breed of therapists." _I turn and leave, not wanting anything else to do with her. I don't care if my arms are still cold, I'm going back to the club. I have things to plan for tonights party.

"Hey, Kagome... There's someone who's requesting a late ticket. I know we stopped selling the tickets for tonight's party, but he was desperate." Miroku asks me. I look at him, taking a note of his sly smirk. After a while, I nod my head.

_"Give him the ticket for free."_ I tell Miroku. He smiles even more then turns around to his cell phone. This isn't even close to funny anymore. It's now eight in the morning and I'm freezing. I go to my floor then to my bathroom. I blush my teeth and hair, sighing. No matter what I do in the morning to 'prep up,' I'm never going to be acceptable...

_"You're horrible, Kagome! You shouldn't be in this world! Your mother should have disowned you as soon as she could! You're a failure and you'll never be one of the other humans!" He screamed._

I shake my head, trying to calm down my nerves. I'm having the anniversary party for my club tonight, so I should help get ready. The less I help, the more is bound to go wrong.

I still can't believe my therapist quit on me. So much for staying by my side no matter what. Phht. They always lie, I don't know why I expected her to keep that one thing true. Wishful thinking. Have you noticed that I've been doing a lot of that recently? Perhaps it's just due to the extreme nerves that are rising.

The big night for my club. I don't think there's room to put another person in here. It's _that_ filled up. I walk around, making sure that no one has any problems. I walk out on the dance floor, pausing briefly. I look towards Miroku, smiling. He looks like he's having fun up there. The music is great, too. This is one of the songs that he managed to get on his own. I look down at my clipboard, wondering if I should start to dance. It has been a while since I've been able to just dance and relax.

_"You call that dancing? I don't think so, Kagome! That's the worst thing I've ever seen! The only way to dance is like this!" My ex yelled at me. I winced as he pulled my body against his. His hands grasped my hips so tight, I could feel them sinking into my skin. The blood began to trickle down my legs, scaring me._

Perhaps dancing isn't a good idea. I walk to the bar, watching Sango. She's nodding to one of the drunks, acting like she understands exactly what he means. She won't say anything, since it'd ruin the fun, but she's enjoying what's going on. My cell phone buzzes, reminding me that my therapist should be calling. Well, probably text messaging me instead. Not like I'm much for phone conversations.

I look down at my cell phone, reading the text message carefully.

_I sent you an email with the information._

I look towards Sango, then towards the elevator. I go up to my room, sighing as the noise dies down. I had the place built so well that I won't be able to hear a sound from down there. Sometimes, I can, but only if I leave the door open a little bit. Otherwise, this place is soundproofed to the actions below.

I walk to my computer, turning it on. While it warms up and gets me online, I turn my cell phone off and leave it in the charger. I sit down at my computer, finding the one new email I have. Sure enough, it's from the therapist.

_Kagome, I have your new therapist's information below. This one's a male, despite you wanting a girl. I tried to find a girl who thought they could handle you, but no one does. He'll have to do.  
Don't panic, he's in the same building as I am. He wants to see you tomorrow at nine o'clock. Not nearly as early as my appointments, huh? Well, he's not a morning person. He may still be waking up when you get there...  
2280 Star Time's Square (room 50)  
He's on the ground floor, to your relief. Well, I guess I'll see you around, Kagome..._

I print the email then turn the computer off once again. I take in a deep breath then slowly let it out. I'm going to make sure that Sango and Miroku are going to be okay for the night. I don't want to let myself sleep if they think they'll need help. I go back downstairs, making my way through the over-crowded dance floor. Sure enough, Sango is still there, pretending to understand the same drunk. I wave to her, and she comes over.

_"Will you be okay for the night? I'm going to bed. If there are any emergencies, then you can come up and wake me up." _I signal to her. She nods her head.

"I'll be fine for the night. The worst thing that's happening is not enough tape to record these converstations on." She comments. I smile then leave to go to bed.

Have you ever had that feeling that someone's following you? I'm having it right now. I turn around, and I can't see anything. Everyone around me is dancing. I take a few more steps forward and look over my shoulder. I'm just paranoid, that's all. I go back up to my room, slipping into the soft blankets with relief.

I'm still alive. Should I be happy or upset?

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_Oh, my, gosh. How can some people get the degrees to even be theapists? This one is arrogant and a jerk to everyone around him. But... He's so nice to me, you'd almost think he had two personalities. The first would be the mean one who picks on everyone, the second would be the nice one who's obsessed with licorice..._

* * *

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **30 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	4. New Therapist

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks_

**Best of You  
**Chapter 4: New Therapist

Have you ever had that feeling that someone's following you? I'm having it right now. I turn around, and I can't see anything. Everyone around me is dancing. I take a few more steps forward and look over my shoulder. I'm just paranoid, that's all. I go back up to my room, slipping into the soft blankets with relief.

I'm still alive. Should I be happy or upset?

- - -

Well, it's nine in the morning, and I'm in the building. Am I wish my therapist? No, he's late. He's not a morning person, and I have no doubts that I'm his first appointment for the day. I can't believe that he's not even here yet.

To the patients who depend on this, someone late would drive them crazy. I don't know why he's allowed to be this late. Perhaps my therapist already told him that I'm not that interested in therapy.

I guess late therapists are a good sign. Means that they aren't trying too hard. Either that, or that they have a personal life. My old therapist seemed to be trying too hard and lacking a life. So, this is a good sign that he's late. Well, it's a good sign in my own sick, weird way.

"How can you even be up right now?" Someone asks. I look down the hall, seeing him coming. He's rubbing his right eye like a child that's still sleepy. I smile at the image of him being little then stand up. While I stand, I profile him.

He's got silver hair, which means he must be a demon. Funny, demons rarely get into this therapy business. Drives most of 'em insane. The dog ears on top of his head indicate that he's a special type of demon... I'm guessing that he'd be a half demon, since no special kinds have _dog_ ears. He has claws on his hands, and I have no doubt in my mind that he has fangs.

"So, you're Kagome Higurashi?" He asks. I nod my head silently as he unlocks his door.

"How old are you?" He asks. I stare at him, wondering if he's seriously asking this question. First of all, he should know that I don't talk. Second of all, he should have my age on record.

"You can't be 27, like she said. You've got your own successful club." He mutters. I tilt my head, giving him my best questioning gaze. How does he know all this about me? My last therapist didn't even know that I _owned_ the club, she just thought I worked there.

_"You can't be a therapist, either. You can't be late to appointments like this." _I sign as he walks away from me. I walk in his office and sit down on his couch. I glance around, noticing how normal it feels. Then I see it. He has a giant bowl of licorice on his desk. What's up with that?

"So, Kagome... You don't talk?" He asks me. He must still be half asleep or else he wouldn't have asked the stupid question. I stare at him whiles he grabs a piece of licorice and stuffs it in his mouth like a cigarette.

"Let's try this again. I'm your new therapist, Inuyasha Taisho. If you're wondering about the licorice bowl, you can stop. I've been told by my friend that I have to stop smoking. He suggested that I keep in steady supply of this stuff. I take this when I want to smoke." He explains. I nod my head then look at the floor near my feet.

"So, since you won't talk, it's clueless to ask you to." He begins. Wow, a therapist who knows when he shouldn't even try. The phone rings, and I look at him. He'll answer it an ignore me gladly, I'm sure. He glares at the phone and picks it up.

"Hello?" He asks sharply. He doesn't sound really happy with whoever's on the other line. It gets quiet for a while, and I know that someone's talking to him.

"Shutup! I don't have to listen to you!" He snaps. He slams the phone down and sits in front of me. In his hand is a few pieces of licorice and a cup of coffee.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to yell around you. Some people annoy me." He says. "Now, I have an assignment for you. You won't talk, and I respect that. You have your reasons." He says. I open my mouth, tempted to say something to thank him. I close my mouth then look down at my lap, where my hands are neatly folded.

"Anyway, this assignment is thinking. I want you to _think_ about what caused you to not talk. Even if you get an answer instantly, I want you to question it. The more you question your motives, the more help it can do." He says. I nod my head then close my eyes. I'm not going to sleep, I'm just trying to clear my vision from things that can distract me.

What did make me stop talking? I guess I started getting quiet when _he _came around. I wan't comfortable around him. Then I stopped talking when he began to hurt me and yell at me. It scared me so much, I couldn't find words to speak. It's like he had sucked out all my words every time he yelled at me.

Still, I would mumble things every now and then. I think Souta is finally was caused me to stop. I love my little brother dearly, and I always will. But, I'm pretty sure that it's him who caused me to stop talking. It was him to made me stop talking completely. But, it wasn't his fault. I guess it was my fault for being that way to him...

"Have an answer?" Inuyasha asks me. I look up at him, fighting the tears that are filling up my eyes. His nose twitches then he pushes a box of tissues towards me. I take one, using it to dry the tears from my face.

"I take that as a... yes..." He begins to slow down. He sounds uncomfortable, but I can't imagine why. I look down, crying openly now. He shuffles around in his seat. Next thing I know, he's sitting down next to me and he's hugging me. I look up at him, and he looks so... peaceful.

When I realize that he's got his _strong_ arms wrapped around me, I tense up. This position doesn't bring back pleasant memories. Soon, I realize that he's just trying to comfort me. I bite my lip, knowing that I shouldn't be trusting anyone this fast. Least of all, a _therapist_. I hug him tightly, and I'm sure he's caught offguard.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to revive something that made you cry... I just want you to be sure of what's bothering you." He says. I nod my head then slowly let him go. I would mutter a thank you, but I'm harshly reminded of why I shouldn't speak.

_"Listen to your voice! It's disgusting! No wonder she's crying right now! She's heard you speak and it hurts her ears!" He yelled._

_"No! Momma likes my voice! She says that I sing good!" I claimed. A harsh slap to my face shut me up._

Perhaps there's a reason I shouldn't speak. I may tell him everything in our first session. I shouldn't do that. I don't know him. For all I know, he could be helping _him_ and reporting things to me.

This sounds like a teenager's conspiracy that everyone is out to get them. I know that not everyone is with him, but I'm afraid of it being possible. I mean that, when you're in a world where you can't trust those closest to you, it's hard to let those further get your trust.

That's why I won't talk. Those closest to me have hurt me. Then the only chance of trust I have are with those furthest away from me. And you can't trust anyone that is so distant to you like that.

"So, since you have an answer, I'm going to ask you another." He says. I nod, realizing that he's still hugging me. Even though I'm not sure how much I can trust him, I appreciate the fact that he's doing this for me. I feel... I actually feel safe for the first time in my life. I feel like I can depend on him.

That's not good. I can't depend on anyone that I've known one day. Somehow, I think he's different. He's been through as much pain as me, even though it's in a different way. He's a half-demon. I'm sure other demons make fun of him for having human blood. I'm also sure that most humans ridicule him for having demon blood.

Maybe that's why he took me in. He takes in abuse cases, since he can understand the feeling of rejection. That's why I trust him. He's been in the same type of pain I have. Sure, it's not from the same source and in the exact same way, but it falls under the same categlory... We've both been left out. Just pushed away by everyone.

In a way, I think that him being able to use his pain from being picked on is inspiring. If he can do it, then I should be able to do the same... Right?

"What is your biggest hope? What are some of the things you want to happen the most? Identify them in your mind." He says. He must get non-talking people a lot. He's really helping me, even though he only asked onequestion so far.

I sniffle then turn around to face the same direction as him. I lean my head against his chest, my mind scolding me. He shouldn't be trusted. He shouldn't be trusted... But he has the right to be trusted. That's good enough for me to believe right now. I'll have to remember to mentally discuss why I trust him already. It's not normal.

My biggest hope. I have so many, but my biggest of all of them? I want to fit in. I want to have a boyfriend like Sango does. I want to be able to enjoy other people and what they say, like Miroku does. I want to interact with people like I'm a real human. I want to be able to enjoy the jokes they say, rather than suffer the memories the jokes surface.

_"I want to live." _I signal to myself. That's the best way to put it. I want to live like anyone else does. Perhaps, sometime in the future, I'll be able to have a family of my own. The idea sounds nice, but I'm not so sure if it'll be possible. I'm incapable of relationships...

_"You'll never have a wedding, Kagome! You're too horrible for a man to look at, let alone marry! You're pathetic! Stop planning your girly weddings! No one will ever love you!" He shouted. I cried, trying to keep him from taking my barbie dolls away from me._

Hmm. Definitely incapable of relationships. There's no way someone could find me and love me without seeing my past. He'd get scared and leave. Anyone would... Besides, he'd just get angry that I never spoke, like Kouga did. I wouldn't blame him, though. I mean, I don't talk. That's annoying to anyone. And so is me shying away everytime my past is mentioned.

"Don't we all." I hear Inuyasha mutter. I look at him, wondering why he said that. He has his eyes closed, and he looks so peaceful. I'm guessing that he's enjoying the quiet time. I doubt he'd be enjoying my company.

Although, I do have to admit I have suspicions. His face has a healthy blush on it. Perhaps he _is_ enjoying my company... Damn, that stupid wishful thinking is back. I should really stop. It'll only succeed in harming me.

_( I was going to end it here, until I realized that I already started what was supposed to be in chapter five. So, you get more! )_

He must've noticed my questioning gaze, because he looked down at me with a big smile.

"You said that you wanted to live. Everyone does." He says. I jump out of his arms, instantly missing the warmth they provided me. No! Bad Kagome! You're not allowed to be in love! you're not allowed to love someone!

I guess I should really stop scolding myself. I mean, that's probably the reason I'm here. I'm scolding myself for starting to like someone. I need to start to relax myself a little bit. Perhaps that will help me, even though I doubt Ill be able to pull this relaxation thing off. It requires something special to be able to be doing that.

_"You can understand sign language?" _I ask frantically. He raises an eyebrow, as if I should have expected something along this line. No one else knows sign language, so why does he look like I should have expected him to know?

"Yes, I can... I'm not as dumb as you may think I am." He tells me smartly. I sigh, then rubmy shoulder nervously.

_"I wasn't implying that you're dumb, I... No one knows sign language. You're the first therapist of mine that knows what I'm saying..."_ I inform him. He smiles slyly, and it makes me uneasy. What could he possibly be thinking to make him smile like **that**?

"There's a first for everything, isn't there?" He asks me. I smile and nod my head. He offers me a hand to help me off of my floor-seat. I grasp it gently, and he pulls me up. I sit down on the couch, and he goes back to the "therapist chair."

I guess there is a first for everything... I just don't want to experience firsts of other things. Like the first of me having faith in someone I hardly know. I don't want to know what could happen if they were to act like _he_ did... I don't like the idea of risking my heart any more that I have to.

"Alright, now that we've got that finished... I don't think I have anything else for you. I do have a homeowkr assignment I want you to think about, though." He says. Would that be him? I know I'll be thinking about him until the next session, and after that I'm sure.

I wait silently, wondering what his homework could possibly be. I've never known a therapist to give out homework. Well, they've never done that to me, at least.

"Kagome, I want you to try to trust other people. I know it's hard for you to do, and I'm sure that you've got your own reasons not to trust them. But, that's beside the point. Your need to try to trust people a little more with your past. Do that for me, okay?" He asks. I hesitate. I know I can't do it, it puts me at risk for more pain. But, I want to do what he's asking me to do... I want to try to get this therapy stuff to work fo rme...

_"Okay..."_ I agree slowly. He smiles then stands up. He grabs a few pieces of licorice, and a black book. He sits down and begins to skim through it.

"When do you think you'll be able to come in next?" He asks. I asnwer him silently then leave the building. As I leave, I know that he's watching me. It makes me uneasy, since I don't know if it's an angry look or a happy look. I guess that it doesn't really matter, since I'm leaving either way...

Maybe I'll be able to do this. Starting tomorrow, I am going to keep up to what I told Mr. Taisho I'd do. I'm going to try to trust people with my past. Most of them aren't gonig to try to hurt me, like they did. I can at least trust the world with that. Trusting people is the least I can do, if I don't want to talk.

That's, if, they deserve it...

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_So, they can't get me to talk. That should make them leave me alone, right? Wrong as of now. I have someone shadowing me and watching each hand gesture I make. As if that's not bad enough, this person is talking to my employees to get information about me._

* * *

I'm really bad at this. I keep forgetting when one chapter ends and the other begins. Well, this is a combination of what was **supposed to be** chapter 5... Whoops. 

Finals are starting soon. That means that I may not be able to update fast. Then again, by the time ya'll read this, finals will probably be _way_ over... What am I even mentioning this for? SOrry, pointless information.

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **40 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	5. Shadow

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks_

**Best of You  
**Chapter 5: Shadow

Maybe I'll be able to do this. Starting tomorrow, I am going to keep up to what I told Mr. Taisho I'd do. I'm going to try to trust people with my past. Most of them aren't gonig to try to hurt me, like they did. I can at least trust the world with that. Trusting people is the least I can do, if I don't want to talk.

That's, if, they deserve it...

- - -

Today's been unnerving. We're starting our day-club today. So, now there won't be just night-noise radiating from my club. We run 24-hours now.

Of course, Miroku still gets his sleep. He's not here yet. Neither is Sango. So, I'm greeting people on a Saturday morning. I'm hardly away myself, but I'm trying to trust them to at least wave to them or whatnot. Like I promsied myself, I'm going to at least be nice to people from now on. Naturally, I avoid my crowd most times.

I approach the main chef, Kaede. She's really nice and will work any hour of the day that I ask her to. Being that she's a little old, I don't like to ask her to work TOO much. That'd just be rude to ask of her.

I look at what she's making. It's some type of cake batter. I take some on my finger and stick it in my mouth. I give her a thumbs-up, then go out to my growing crowd. Even though it's light outside, a lot of party-people are having fun in _my_ club. I'm the only club who stays open through daylight hours now.

Which is good for business. I guess it's good for my therapy homework, too. I make my way through the large crowd that's taking over the dance floor. Miroku offered to come in at ten in the morning. It's late, but he's tired after going to bed at midnight. Sango will be in around nine, since she's more of a morning person.

I bump into people, trying my best not to go upstairs. I'm dressed, and ready for public. There's nothing to go upstairs for...

_"Don't touch me! Did you honestly think that you were good enoguh to put your filthy hands on me? Stop crying, you pathetic baby! You're not worthy of anything! Get away from me!" He shouted at me. I cried hard, trying my best to ignore the harmful words that he spat out at me._

I stare off into space. It takes me a while to realize that I'm not moving anymore. I look aruond me, realizing that I'm still on the dance floor. I walk to the other side of the building and sit on one of the beanbag chairs. I try to relax, by my mnd won't let me.

_"Mommy, he's being mean to me..." I told my mother. She gave me a long look before she began to cry._

_"I'm so sorry, Kagome. There's nothing I can do..." She told me. I touched her hand, trying to tell her that I was worried for her._

_"Mommy, can't you make him go away?" I asked her. She looked at me before looking back down._

_"I can't. It's too late to change anything, Kagome... He's going to get custody of you when I die." She told me. I blinked, not understanding exactly what she had just said. My mother wouldn't die when I was a little girl. She always said that she'd be with me to watch me get married to the man who deserves me._

_"What's custody, mommy?" I asked innocently. Being a six-year-old, I didn't understand too much._

_"That means... It means that, when I die, he'll be your daddy." She said._

_"He can't be my daddy! Daddy's going to come back, you told me so!" I cried._

_"Daddy won't be coming back, Kagome..." She told me pitifully. I shook my head then ran outside. There was no way she'd die and leave me alone with this man. He was mean to me, and she knew it... He was even mean to her..._

I realize that someone's been standing in front of me for a while. When my eyes refocus, I notice that it's one of the waitresses. She looks worried as she kneels down in front of me.

"Kagome, what would you like to drink?" She asks me. I know that she only knows the alphabet in sign language, so I signal to her slowly.

_"C-a-p-t-a-i-n... M-o-r-g-a-n." _I signal to her. She smiles then places a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"More of those flashbacks?" She asks in a near-inaudible tone. I nod my head slowly, feeling ashamed that she knows what's wrong.

"Well, just so you know... There's a very sexy silver-haired man in a beanbag chair somewhere behind you. He came here around the same time as you, and he's been writing in something the entire time. I'ev never known someone to come here and write..." She says. I glance over my shoulder discreetly.

I wish I could tell her to relax, and that it's just my therapist. I don't want to spell all of that out for her, though. Besides, it's my thing to worry about, not hers. I wave my hand off, trying to signal to her that she doesn't need to worry. She nods her head then goes off to get my rum for me.

Naturally, I'm not a drinker. I have no interest in alcohol on most days. Today isn't most days, though. Most days, I don't rememebr this much of my past at once. Most days, I don't have my therapist stalking me... And most days, my club isn't still open.

Perhaps this is going to be most days, though. maybe there's a new trend that's going to start here... Although, I do have to admit that I don't want it to be. If this is what most days will be like, I should get a lot more Captain Morgan for my club to keep stocked.

Soon, the waitress returns with my clear rum. I take the water-appearing liquid over to where Inuaysha sits. I sit down next to him and take a sip. Even though the alcohol burns my throat a little bit, it's relieving. I set the stuff down on a coaster and look at Inuyasha. When he looks up at me,I smile.

_"What are you here for?"_I ask slyly. He looks down at his tablet then closes it. He sets it down, along with his pen, then turns to face me entirely.

"Had to make sure that you'd keep up to your promise." He tells me.

_"How do you know which club I work at?" _I question harshly. I'm glaring at him, but I doubt it makes a difference. My hands are doing my talking.

"I did some research. Found out from one of my friends that you worked here... Turns out that he works for you." Inuyasha tells me. I look at him for and open my mouth. I slowly close my mouth, deciding against it.

_"Who's your friend that works for me?"_ I question. Inuyasha shakes his head with a smart smile on his face.

"I'm not telling. You may fire him for helping me. I doubt you would, from the way he speaks of you... But I wouldn't want to risk it." Inuyasha tells me. I take another drink of my rum then set it back down.

"Can't imagine you drinking water." Inuyasha points out.

_"I usually drink soda."_ I signal calmly.

"Today special?" He questions. I shake my head, hoping that he won't realize that I'm lying. He takes my drink them smells it with his demon smell. He glares at me then sets it down.

"Have something to be drinking down with that stuff?" He asks. I nod my head before realizing my mistake. I set my hands down, and Inuyasha smiles.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to pry you for information you're not willing to give. You're not ready to tell anyone, so I won't try... At least I know that there is something I'm going to have to deal with." He tells me. I nod my head then he stands up.

"The waitress was smart for knowing that I was following you. I'm going around to talk to some of your employees. See what they think of you..." He says. I begin to get up, but he stops me.

"Don't come, please. They'll alter their answers if they know you're listening. Just stay here, enjoy your Captain Morgan, and I'll see you at our appointment." He says. I watch him go, silently wanting to follow him. I want to be by his side, no matter what he's doing. I want to know what my employees think of me...

I get up then walk into the other room, grasping my rum tightly. I walk into the bar, sitting down ona stool while Sango turns to me.

"Kagome! I see you already have something to drink." She says. She picks it up and sniffs it to see what I could be drinking.

"Captain Morgan. I like this stuff sometimes." She says. She takes a sip then sets it down. I guess everyone likes this type of alcohol due to its sweet taste. I can't blame them, it is pretty damn good.

"So, you hear what happened last night after Miroku and I got off?" She asks. I shake my head and lean forward to hear what she's about to say. This is going to be good if she's willing to tell it to me.

"Miroku and I went on a date... It got really good too. He kept his hands to himself after I threatened to ignore him. We... We made out on my porch then he went home." She tells me. I smile suggestively, and she shakes her head.

"No! I'm not going to get into a heavy relationship with him... Not yet, at least. Please don't tell him that!" She says quickly.

_"Tell him? Are you insane?"_ I ask her. She laughs then refills my rum. I lift it in a type of toast to her then drink it. I get up and leave, mosying around the rest of my club aimlessly. In the middle of the dance floor, a hand grabs my upper arm. I freeze, my heart starting to race. He's found me. One of the two men I've been trying to get away from has found me.

"Kagome, why are you so tense?" I hear him ask. I turn around, relieved to see Inuyasha instead of _them_. I shrug nochalantly and smile as if nothing were bothering me.

"Well, I got enough information from your employees... I was wondering if you wouldn't mind your shadow asking you to a dance." He says. I blink for a minute, wondering why he's referring to himself as the shadow. I mean, I know he's shadowing me and he knows I have knowledge of it, but why refer to himself as that?

I nod my head skeptically, wondering if this is really a good idea. I set down my glass of rum on a nearby table. He takes my hand gently, as I'm sure he doesn't want to be hurting me with his claws. We walk to a spot more center on the dance floor, and I look towards the D.J booth. Miroku is looking at me, smiling widely. I don't want to know what he's going to do. He'll put on some fast song that he knos I don't want to dance to.

Instead, he puts on a decently slow song. Inuyasha places his hand on my hip, acting as if he's not so sure about how to dance with a woman. I smile at him as he tries to dance properly.

"Sorry, I'm not used to dancing with women that often. It's not a hobby." He says. I take my hands away from him long enough to reply.

_"It's fine. I'm not that used to dancing with men. Not my hobby."_ I signal back. I let my arms rest on his shoulders, and his second hand rests on my hip. I'm not used to this type of touch, not when it's gentle. The only other intimite touch I've gotten has been much more violent.

So, we go through a few more dances. I will have to give Miroku a handsome raise for not playing those fast songs. The only reason I don't want them on while I"m dancing with my oh-so-sexy therapist is because that implies grinding against him. I'm not doing that.

I'm not even supposed to have these feelings for my therapist. And he's not supposed to care this much for me. Maybe this is the way he does therapy, maybe it's because he's nice, or it could be that he has feeilngs for me. But, there has to be a reason why he's acting this way. There's no way that he's asking me to dance because he likes me.

There's no way it can happen.

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_So, what happens when he runs out of people to interrogate? Well, he requests (rather forcefully), to meet my family. I try to inform him that he shouldn't, but he stops me (by holding my hands together). So, he requests to see my mother, father, and little brother... I have to find a way to explain why he can't while keeping my past a mystery to him._

* * *

**PlantersPunch:** I'm glad that you learned some new vocab. What words did you learn? Did you just learn the words or did you get the definitions too? I swear I'm not a teacher... 

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **50 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	6. Meet the Family

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks_

**_FYI to all my readers: Rather than having 19 chapters, I now have 17. I combined two short chapters into one big one for ya'll. Then I got rid of an un-needed chapter. That should makeyou all happy. If it doesn't, then you need to stop reading my story._**

**_Wait! I was kidding! Don't leave! Keep reading, even if you aren't happy about me making things go along smoother. One of those chapters was a filler chapter. Completely un-needed. And the other two were consecutive, but they were too short on their own. See! I have reasons!_**

**Best of You  
**Chapter 6: Meet the Family

I'm not even supposed to have these feelings for my therapist. And he's not supposed to care this much for me. Maybe this is the way he does therapy, maybe it's because he's nice, or it could be that he has feeilngs for me. But, there has to be a reason why he's acting this way. There's no way that he's asking me to dance because he likes me.

There's no way it can happen.

- - -

My therapist isn't so bad. He's stratiened up and started acting professional to me, again. Then he started acting more casual.It's been almost eight months that I've been in his therapy. Now, he talks to me like we're friends. And we are. But, he doesn't act professional nowadays.

He's told me a lot about his past. He's had a tough time with being bullied for being a half demon, and I expected as much. Knowing the torment that he went through, I have more respect for him. That's not the only thing that's grown for him.

Over these eight months, I've stared realizing something else. I'm in love with him. I know it sounds stupid, but he's... He's just something else. He knows what it feels like to be left out of the crowd. He knows what it's like to suffer verbal abuse. He understands the pain I've been through, but he's made something useful of it. He's using it to help those of us who can't handle it.

He's really funny, too. He goes through licorice like a child goes through ice cream. He's started slowing down, recently. Maybe his desire for cigarettes is finally dying down. Either that, or our sessions are getting shorter. I can't decide which.

As I brush my hair, I decide one thing. I'm a hideous mess. My brown eyes look like something from the wrong end of a dog. Not only that, but they look boring. I mean, could there be anything else that's interesting on me? No, of course not. My black hair reminds me of my little brother's shaggy hair.

But, mine has lost it's natural shine. It's got a dull look to it that is driving me insane. My body doesn't seem right. Sure, Sango insists that I have the figure every woman wants, but I don't think I do. I only see an ugly woman when I look at myself. I doubt I'm even a woman some days.

I get in the shower, scrubbing my hair until I'm sure it's ready to fall out. I rinse, but not repeat. I'm so sick of repeating things, even if it's as simple as shampooing. I put conditioner in my hair and then wash it out when it's sat for two minutes.

I get out, dripping wet. I wrap a towel around my body as I attempt to get myself to stop my hair from dripping. Within ten minutes, I've gotten mysel dry. I dress in comfortable jeans and a brown shirt. When i walk out, I pull on my black sweater.

I've stopped going to therapy sessions now. Inuyasha actually comes here whenever he has the time. Sometimes I'm not here, and he hang out doing who-knows-what. Most of the time he's here when I'm done with my shower and I talk to him then. I don't know if he'll be here today. He said he had something important to organize.

I go downstairs and greet Miroku. He smiles at me, teasing me about dating Inuaysha. He knows i can't and won't fight back. I think he's being mean if he's picking on someone who's unable to fight back.

"Relax, Kagome. Miroku is just jealous of you because you're dating someone and he's not getting **any**thing from me." Sango says. I smile as she approaches us two.

"My sweet Sango, why do you tell her such things?" Miroku asks pathetically.

"Because I want to torture you and because Kagome wom't tell anyone." Sango replies. Miroku looks at me and I make a motion of zipping my lips.Sango puts her arm around my shoulder, giggling.like it's more funny than it is.

"My sweet Sango, you shouldn't say things like that when you may be with child." Mirou says. Sango screams, in my ear no less, then slaps him.

"You said you wouldn't tell anyone!" She snaps.

"Kagome can't tell. I mean, no offense to her, but she's unable to tell anyone. Besides, I'ms ure she woudln't anyway." Mirou says. I nod my head in agreement then rub Sango's stomach.

_"I can't believe you're going to be a mother. You'll have to quit the job whlie you've got a baby..."_ I signal. She sighs then nods.

"Yeah, I know, but I can't. Mirouk isn't making enough to support us. You pay enough for my bartending skills that we can get by every month." She explains to me. I shake my head, getting a piece of paper out.

_"No, you're not working when you have a child. Miroku's going to get paid three times as much as before. I'm not going to see you working here."_ I say. Miroku and Sango both gasp then Sango hugs me tightly. I'm sure Miroku would have done the same, but he knows that I'm not trusting of his hands.

"Thank you so much, Kagome. This means a lot to me... Well, to _us_." She says. She hugs me once more then kisses Miroku and leaves. I'm sure she's going to their new home.

I guess I forgot to mention this. Sango and Miroku got married three months ago. Even though they're still shy to admit to it in public, they are officially married. I went to the ceremony and signed as a witness. I doubt I can be a good witness, if I can't speak about it. I guess it doesn't matter, but I keep thinking that it might in some strange way.

I nearly scream when someone hugs me from behind. Miroku starts laughing, which is the one things that's keeping me from losing it. I turn my head to see a cheerful Inuyasha. I want to be mad at him for doing that, but he doesn't know better. No one does.

"Nice to see ya, Miroku." Inuaysha greets. I guess his hugging me was a greeting, although a rather startling one.

"You too... So, what are you here for? I thought that you weren't going to come today." Miroku says. I give him a questioning look, and he's quick to explain. "Inuyasha and I have been friends since he was a little boy. I'm a couple years older than him, so he listened to me when I told him to stay away from the bully demons."

I guess you do learn something new everyday. Somedays I doubt this, but today isn't one of them.

"Yah. I didn't tell you because I was afraid you'd fire Miroku. Now I'm sure you don't have the heart to do it since Sango went on maternity leave." Inuyasha says.

_"You knew that she was pregnant?" _I ask.

"Not only did I just hear it now, I could smell it on her a few days ago." Inuyasha says. I look at Miroku.

"So, what are you doing with Kagome?" He asks Inuyasha.

"I'm taking her to see her family. She just has to tell me where." He says. My eyes widen and I squirm out of his casual grasp. I shake my head quickly, since my hands seem to be failing me right now.

"What? You don't want to go?" He asks. I shake my head rapidly, trying to deter him from the idea of going to see my family.

"Well, if it's wrong that you don't want to go... Then you want to go. Come on, you just have to point me in the direction of where they are." He says. I try not to cry as I shake my head slowly.

_"I don't want to see my family, though. You don't either." _I signal to him. He grasps my hands, shaking his head.

"I do. I want to meet your family to see what they have to say. I want to see them, whether you like it or not. You can either tell me, or I'll call in a favor on my half-brother." He says. I know he doesn't want to talk to his half brother, so he must be really serious about this.

"Now, since you've calmed down, come in my car with me and tell me where your family is." He says. I follow him, glancing back at a very confused Miroku. He has no idea what's so bad about seeing my family either. But he understands it, Inuaysha thinks that we aren't getting along.

He opens the door, and I reluctantly get in. "You and your parents not on speaking terms?" He questions. I shake my head as I look out the window.

_"No, not really. Hard for me to talk to them nowadays."_ I reply. He smiles then begins driving. I point in directions whenever we get to a stoplight. Soon enough, we're there. He looks at me, as if I have deceived him on my family's residence.

"You've got to be kidding. Your parents are dead?" He asks. I nod sadly then lead him to my father's and mother's tombstones. I really wish I could tell him everything with my voice, but that'd be breaking rule number two.

"Tell me... What happened to your little brother?" He asks as he looks down on my father's grave.

_"He's next to mom. Father left and we received a letter one day that he died. His body was never found, but we had a funeral for him and everything. Mom died last, but we all knew she was going to die soon. So, there was room between by brother and my father for her..." _I signal. Inuyasha nods then kneels down to my brother's gravestone.

"You and your brother... Were you close?" He asks. I nod my head rapidly. My brother and I were very close in so many ways.

_"Kagome! Stop it! Your brother deserves what's coming!" He yelled. I shook my head and stood in front of my brother. Sure, I valued live quite a bit, but I loved my brother too much to let this monster hurt him anymore._

_"No! Leave Souta out of this!" I snapped._

_"You want me to leave him out of this? Well, now that I know what hurts you most, he'll suffer more!" He said maniacally._

_"No! You're a bastard! Leave my little brother alone!" I yelled at him. Sure, I was hardly even in high school at the time, but I had to get the point across to this man._

"How about your mother?" Inuyasha asks. I nod my head hesitantly.

_"We were close in the beginning, but then shit started happening..."_ I say. I slap my hand for my foul language. I loved my mother a lot, but when crap started happening a lot, she drifted away from me.

_"Mommy, why can't we go to the park?" I asked as I pulled on her arm. She cried in pain, and that's when I saw the bruises that the man had left._

_"Mommy's really weak, honey." She said. I got in bed next to her and tried to hug her. She cried in pain at that too._

_"Mommy's too hurt to love me?" I asked._

_"Yes, mommy can't love you right now. Just... Remember this for me, Kagone... I love you a lot, no matter what happens between us. Even if I can't be around anymore."_

_"Mommy, you'll always be with me!" I said, trying to cheer her up. If only I had known what was really going on. I'd have known that my words only hurt her more._

"I'm sorry, Kagome. I shouldn't have assumed they were alive." Inuaysha tells me. I shrug my shoulders. He didn't know. No one did. That's one of the many things that I made suer was hidden from my friends. That was a part of my past, so I hid it as well as I knew how.

"Come on, I'll take you out for lunch. It'll be my way of making up this mistake to you." He says. I nod my head slowly. Food won't help me feel better entirely, but he knows it'll heal the hurt he just brought to me.

I'm really relieved that he knows this, for some reason. Now that he knows my family is dead, he may stop his therapy. Or he may press forward with it. I can't be too sure. Either way, I'll be happy. If he stops, then life can continue as it is. If he continues, I may be able to live like a real person. He may help me in gettting my voice back.

I just have to overcome this fear...

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_Alright, he's getting closer to me while respecting my wishes to not talk. I'm not sure if this can be related to therapy, but I'm starting to enjoy it.Then, he invites me to walk through the park tonight. I can't say no, since he'll assume that I don't like him or something along those lines... I'm stuck walking in the moonlight with one of the most handsome men I've ever seen. Romance, anyone?_

* * *

Wow. Ya'll got these reviews in fast. Thanks for that. Despite the fast reviewing, I may not be able to work on chapters (I'm on ch. 13 out of 15) until finals are over. I have finals on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. So, after those are done, I should be able to work on more stories. Yay! 

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **60 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	7. Evening Session

**Summary: **Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks_

**Best of You  
**Chapter 7: Evening Session

I'm really relieved that he knows this, for some reason. Now that he knows my family is dead, he may stop his therapy. Or he may press forward with it. I can't be too sure. Either way, I'll be happy. If he stops, then life can continue as it is. If he continues, I may be able to live like a real person. He may help me in gettting my voice back.

I just have to overcome this fear...

- - -

"Kagome, we have to plan another session..." Inuyasha tells me over lunch. I pause with my fork half-way in my mouth. I nod my head then eat the food entirely. I don't need to ask when, because I know he'll answer it anyway.

"How about... Damn, my days are full." He says. I watch in mild facination as he eats his ramen. he's slurping it up like he's in love with it. Then again, the way he's talked about it before, I'm sure that he is in love with the stuff. I can remember him calling it the best food on the planet.

I set my fork down as I wait for him to keep talking. My drink isn't alcohol today, even though I wanted some. He ordered me some of my favorite soda instead. Guess not being able to talk makes it hard to get what you really want. All the same, I have found that I got something I want. Safety from the men I'm afraid of.

I guess that doesn't count. That's one pro against a million and three cons. So, Inuyasha pulls out his black booklet. He's going to check his schedule, I'm sure. He looks it over then shakes his haed in dissapointment.

"The soonest time I have available for therapy would be a week from tomorrow. But, the day is full. The soonest would be after the office closes. Care for a evening at the park session?" He asks. I shrug my shoulders. He'll make me go whether or not I care for the idea.

"Well, since you don't have opinions that I can hear, I'm going to take it as a yes. So, I'll meet you at the part at seven. Bring things to walk in. We're not sitting on the bench the entire time." He says. I smirk, taking one last sip of my soda as the waiter comes with our check.

Oh my God! How agonizing. I guess I'm overreacting, but I have the right to. I'm going to the park with Inuyasha. This means that I'll have to look good while being comfotable with what I'm wearing. They need to make stylish walking clothes. That's one of the things I could really go for right now.

I pull on my most comfortable sweats and keep my black jacket on. I don't have a shirt on under it, but it should be cold tongiht. I don't mind that. Inuyasha won't mind that...

I can't believe I jsut thought that. I'm beginning to think wrongly about him. I shouldn't feel this way. Sure, it's been... Let's count. It's been around 33 weeks that we've known each other. That sounds like hardly any time, but that's 8 months. That's plenty of time, in my opinion.

Then again, in my opinion, I'm trusting him too fast. I can't be letting him know all this about my family like I did. He now knows that something's wrong with my family that caused all three of them to die. While I won't tell him what it is, I'm sure that he's come up with a crazy idea that's close to the truth. At least he does't know if it's true or not...

I walk to the park, taking a deep breath. No matter what goes on tonight with my therapist, I can't talk to him. I can't let him know what my horrible voice sounds like. I can't let him know the things that I've experienced. If he knows that much, he may... He may begin to hate me like everyone else does...

_"You're a horrible person, Kagome! You shouldn't have been allowed into this world! Your mother regrets the day that you were conceived. Even more the day that you were born! She hates the fact that you came out of her! You're a failure to your mother your brother!" He yelled. I looked at my brother and walked up to him. I ruffled his hair, shaking my head. I couldn't say anything to him, not at that time... I ruined everything._

I sit down on a bench, checking my watch curiously. I guess I'm only a few minutes early, but I didn't want to be early. I don't want to be waiting for him to show up.

What if he doesn't show up, thuogh? What if this is a setup or something? I suddenly feel like I've been duped. Like he's not going to show up and there's someone laughing at me right now. I guess that I'm getting too far ahead of myself. I know that there's a low chance of him actually doing this to pick on me, but it feels like that.

"Kagome!" I hear someone call. Inuyasha comes up to me, smiling widely. I wave at him calmly, secretly praising that he actually came.

"Hey, I don't mean to ruin the therapy session, but Italked to Miroku about it. So, he's going to come with Sango tonight." Inuyasha tells me. I take a deep breath then nod my head. At least this means that I won't have to be _alone_ with Mr. Handsome. A part of me is disappointed, but that's the part of me that's hopelessly in love with him.

"Well, they're going to meet us on the other side of the park. So, we should get walking so they don't think we're ditching them." He says. I stand up then he begins to walk to the other side of the park. I keep up with him, lost in my own thoughts.

"I'm glad you showed up. I thought that you wouldn't. That's why I didn't mind Miroku and Sango coming along." Inuyasha tells me. I look at him, my eyes wide. When he looks at me, I begin to move my hands.

_"I was worried that you wouldn't show up too."_ I admit. He smiles then grabs one of my hands. At first, I think I'm in trouble or that I said something wrong. But, he lets his hand rest at his side, holding mine in a way that's making me blush like crazy. If it weren't sunset, then perhaps he'd be able to see it.

"Well, don't worry that I won't show up. I couldn't do that to you..." He pauses, as if realizing something is wrong with what he's said. "It'd be rude not to show up for a therapy session that we're having." He adds. I sigh then turn my attention to what's in front of us.

"So, has the club been doing good since it started running in the day?" He asks me. I nod my head happily and he grins. I guess he's glad for my company's success too.

"How much has your profit gone up since you started to run in the days?" He asks. I thik a bit, calculating all these numbers in my head.

_"Around 2,000 more a day. I'm going to give my employees raises with the extra money."_ I tell him. He smiles once more, and I notice that he's been doing that a lot recently. He didn't seem to smile a lot in the beginning. Well, not from what I can rememebr at least. It's been eight months, so I'm sure that my memory has started to fade on this subject.

"You've always been really kind to people, Kagome. That's one of the things I admire about you. Rather than pocketing the extra two grand that you're making, you're gonig to give people raises with the money." He says. I blush then he stops moving. I stop and look at him curiously, wondering what's gone to his head.

"You're really beautiful, you know that? You look even cuter when you blush." He says. I feel my entire body freeze up and my face turn absolutely red. He leans his head towards mine, and I'm secretly hoping he's gong to actually kiss me.

"Hey! Inuyasha! We'er here!" I hear Miroku yelling. I jump instinctively, my head crashing into Inuyasha's. He makes a noise that I can't define... It's something like a painful sound, but he sounded like he was barking, or something along those lines. I hold my head in pain, and I'm sure he's donig the same thing.

"What'd you do that for?" He asks sharply. I resist the urge to cry as I try to make my head stop throbbing. His skull is hard to inflict this much pain on me!

_"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to! Please forgive me!" _I signal. He shakes his head then looks towards Sango and Miroku,

"I'm sorry. I overreacted. You hurt my head, that's all... I'm sorry for snapping at you." He says. I look away, trying to get the tears in my eyes to go away. Before I know it, he's got his arm around my back and he's pulled me into him. I relax slowly, looking off towards where Sango is coming towards us.

"What's going on here?" Miroku asks. He looks at us, and I know he must be thinking perverted things about us. Either that, or he's too confused to be at that step yet.

"You two look so cute together!" Sango says. I smile at her, wishing that she'd be quiet. I like the compliment, but I don't want Inuyasha to know it. If he knows that I like him, I'm afraid that he'll freak out or something. Soon enough, he lets go of me and we start walking. Sango is to my right, and Inuyasha is to my left. On the other side of him is Miroku.

"So, did you hear the news about someone escaping from prison?" Sango asks. My body tenses up instinctively as I look over at her.

"Oh yah, I heard about that. Apparently this guy stopped eating for a long time. He got skinny enough to get through those really small windows." Miroku says. I think for a while before deciding that it doesn't matter. He got out of prison last year. With my luck, he'll get together with my ex-boyfriend and they'll start planning my murder together.

"Kagome, you okay? You seem tense..." Inuaysha says. I look at him, smiling fakely. I'm anything but okay, but I don't want him to know that.

"Hey, Inuyasha... Is that your brother?" Miroku asks. I look at him, then at tthe silver-haired man that is coming towards us. A girl who looks like she's hardly out of high school is with him.

"Inuyasha!" The girl squeels. She rusn up to him, hugging him so tight, I'm sure that he's about to lose his ability to breathe.

"Hi, Rin... What are you and Fluffy doing here?" He asks. Rin looks back at Sesshoumaru, then at Inuyasha.

"Well, since he's thinking about having a fmaily, I've started trying to take care of my body more. I want to be in good shape before I have a kid!" She says cheerfully. I guess she's married to the other man...

"Hi, Sesshoumaru. This is Kagome." Inuasyha says. Sesshoumaru takes one look at me, seemign unhappy. He looks like he could set me on fire right now because of the look on his face.

"Kagome... Is she the one you always speak so highly of?" He asks. His voice is stone cold, which makes me even more uneasy.

"Yes." Inuyasha mutters. I'm sure that he's embarassed from something. I don't know what it is. Sesshoumaru takes my hand and kisses it like a gentleman. I hear Inuyasha growling loudly beside me. I look over at him, surprised to see the protective look on his face.

"Sesshoumaru, your wife is right next to you. Behave." Inuyasha says. Sesshoumaru gives him a harsh glare then the two of them keep walking along behind us.

"I'm sorry, my brother and I don't get along." Inuyasha says. I shrug my shoulders and begin to listen to the conversation.

I guess this isn't as romantic as I thought. I'm happy, since i don't know what I could have done... My emotions are all strange recently. Sure, I do like Inuaysha, but I don't want to have these things happening. I don't want the romance because, well... He could find out about my past and then he'll hate me.

I'd rather keep him and my secret than lose him and my secret...

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_So, after the first night session, he decides that more of them will help me to "open up" to people. Open up my ass, I'm not going to. So, where does a therapist take his mentally disturbed patient? I don't want to know, but I have a bad feeling about this. Something is bound to go wrong and he'll find out..._

* * *

I hope the fluff in this chapters was good. I think it's cute how Kagome jumps and gets Inuyasha frustrated. I get ideas like this from thinking of Kyo from Fruits Basket. That's why Inuyasha snapped at her, because my mind is somewhere else. Anyway, I hope you all like this chapter. Hopefully, you like this story too. 

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **70 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	8. Thick Layer of Romance

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks_

**_Warning! This specific chapter is rated "R" for romantic. I'll be trying to put in a lot of fluff. If there's hardly any fluff, then I forgot to put it in._**

**_Hey look, it's raining outside!_**

**Best of You  
**Chapter 8: Thick Layer of Romance

I guess this isn't as romantic as I thought. I'm happy, since i don't know what I could have done... My emotions are all strange recently. Sure, I do like Inuaysha, but I don't want to have these things happening. I don't want the romance because, well... He could find out about my past and then he'll hate me.

I'd rather keep him and my secret than lose him and my secret...

- - -

It's been another three weeks. That makes it nine months that I've been in his therapy. Nine months that he's been attempting to get me to open up. Nine months is also the gestation period for a woman.

Speaking of pregnancies. Sango's really cute. She comes in here to feed Miroku. Sometimes she brings food, but they usually eat for free at the restauraunt. Sometimes she'll talk to me, but not on most days.

"Hey, Kagome. Inuyasha's coming in today. You should get cleaned up." She tells me. I look at her, wondering why I need to be cleaned up. I've been working in the kitchen for a few hours. After long enough of staring, she gets out her compact mirror.

"Kagome, what are you doing back here?" Inuyasha asks me. I look at him, wondering what's up with everyone thinking I can't work in my own company. He looks at me then chuckles.

"Been working in here that long, huh?" He asks. I stare at him as he brings a hand up to my face. He takes it down, showing me a piece of cake batter. I smile sheepishly then take Sango's compact from her. Indeed, I have cake batter in a fwe spots on my face. The rest of it is covered in flour.

"She's been having fun in here." Sango says. I glare at her then walk to the elevator, Inuyasha closely behind me.

"Where are you going?" He asks. I punch in the code for the elevator then turn aroudn to answer him.

_"I'm washing up."_ I tell him. He raises an eyebrow then shrugs.

"I'm going in with you." He states. I shoot him a glare, wondering why. "I'm curious what your part of house looks like." He adds. I roll my eyes then go in the elevator, holding it open for him to get in.

Times like this, I'm glad I don't have elevator music. Soon enough, we're at the top. I let him in then I go to my room. I can hear his astonished gasps from the door to my floor. I guess he assumed that I'd have a small, pathetic place up here. No, all my profit seems to go into my home. And _this_ is my home. Not the best, but it's something.

I go into my bathroom and wipe all the flour off my face. I take in a deep breath then look down at the clock. It's around four, and I haven't eaten lunch yet. Perhaps Inuyasha won't mind if I get something to eat before the date.

Oh, I forgot! It's not a date. We're going to the movies, but he calls it a therapy session. I think it's a date, but he's convinced otherwise. He's just in denial about it.

I get some clothes from my closet and then begin to put them on. I doubt Inuyasha will barge in here without permission. As I pull off my shirt, I can swear that he's coming in. I look at the doorknob for a while, wondering if it's moving or not. After a short staring contest, I finish getting dressed and go back out to where he is.

He's sitting on my couch... Correction. He's laying down on my couch, seeming to be in heaven. I smile then go to the fridge and attempt to find something decent to eat. I hardly eat from my own fridge. I usually eat from the one downstairs, the one that the club owns. I groan in defeat then close the door.

Inuyasha's right there in front of me, causing me to jump backwards. I probably would have squeeled in surprise, but my voice doesn't seem to know how to function anymore.

"What were you doing?" He asks me cautiously.

_"Looking for lunch so I wouldn't starve during the movie."_ I inform him.

"Well, don't. Come on, much more stalling and we may not have enough time!" He says. He grasps my hand then takes me down the elevator. He takes me out to his car and opens the door. He's in a hurry, but why? What's he got to get to that's so important to him?

I get in the car, pulling the seat belt over my chest. He gets in, and we're leaving my club. He's driving calmly, even though I can sense the urgency in him. I look at him curiously, but that doesn't give me an explanation either. I sigh then look out the window.

Turns out, he was taking me to dinner. Well, I call it lunch, but he referred to it as dinner. It was a very nice place, but there wasn't a fancy dress code like you'd expect. Inuyasha was such a gentleman to me, too! I can't believe how nice he is sometimes. Other times, I wonder where the nice guy has gone.

This isn't one of those times, though. I'm sitting in the movie theater, and he's getting me something to drink. He won't tell me what we're watching, which intimidates me a little. I know that guys take chicks to horror films so we'll jump into their arms. Well, I can't handle horror films. I have a bad history. Most of these films may seem fake compared to my experiences, but they remind me of what I'm trying to forget.

Speaking of forgetting, I'm doing a great job of it. Have you noticed that I haven't had any major flashbacks today? I'm proud of it, but no one else would really understand if I told them. So, it'll be my silent victory.

Inuyasha comes back, a bottle of water in his hand. He gives it to me, making me smile. I've been trying to cut back on my soda intake recently. I'm not doing good at it so far, but this will help me a bit.

Well, the movie _is_ a horror film. It's about some guy goes on a murdering spree and does the things violently. The police are trying to catch him. So, it's all about the chase of this guy that's doing gruesome things. I watch, half-interested in the movie, as a woman is killed. Her skin is too tan for it to be real. If the actors were doing dead-like things, then they should have tried to make her face pale.

_"That's not even close to real."_ I signal to myself. Rather than mutter things like someone else might do, I sign them. I look at Inuyasha to see if he's enjoying it. If he is, then I'll be content. His head jerks away, and I know he probably just saw my hands and their words. What will I say to him when he asks about it?

I lean against Inuyasha, trying to relax him a bit. He's got to be tense after seeing me comment on what a real murdered person looks like. I think this is working, because his shoulders are relaxing. I smile in my own victory and stare at the screen.

But, my mind isn't on the movie. It's on what I'll say. I know Inuyasha's going to ask me what I meant. I don't know how else to explain it to him, other than using the truth. The truth is too violent, and I'm sure that he'll be disgusted by it once he knows.

_"No one will understand! You can try to tell them what I'm doing, Kagome, but they won't understand! You know what will happen if the police search our house? I'll put her drugs in your room. Then they'll arrest you and you'll be punished for telling others! **No one can understand what's going on right now! No one!**" He shouted at me. I could do nothing but believe him..._

Before I know it, the movie is out. That's a relief, since I didn't like the movie. Of course, this means that Inuyasha is going to ask me about what I signed... I haven't come up with an answer yet. I don't want to lie to him, because I know he'll find out the truth. I don't want to tell him the truth either, since he may turn on me still.

Inuyasha drives me to a hill with a nice city view. I guess he wants to relax me before he pries information from me. He turns the car off, then turns to face me. My heart must be beating a million times a minute. I can hear it pounding in my chest.

"Kagome... I've spent a long time being a therapist. I've learned that when someone doesn't talk, there's a reason. I never push my clients to talk if they don't want to. They'll tell me when they're ready to... But, I want to know about what you did in the theater. You said something about the murdered man being real or not... I'm not asking you to tell me as your therapist. I'm asking you as your friend who's really worried." He says.

I bite my lip, wondering what to do. I really want to tell him so he can know. So he'll be able to help me get over it... But I can't. It's not as easy as I think. There's so much that I have to get out of my head, I don't know how to do it.

It's like my memories are a big tangled mess. Naturally, I'd show the mess to everyone else to get their help. But, this kind is horrible. This kind of mess I have to keep to myself. So, I have to work on it on my own. And I'm not making it anything but worse. I guess... I guess I should tell someone. And a therapist sounds like the best start for that...

_"My... my brother... He was murdered. I saw the end of it... I saw my brother trying to take in more air, but he couldn't. He was bleeding pretty badly, and there was nothing else I could do for him. Mom was a few feet behind him, but she wasn't capable of doing anything..."_ I signal to him. My hands are quivering as hot tears begin to streak down my face.

Mom couldn't help because mom was on another planet. She started taking drugs when she met the man who broke this family apart. He got her hooked. Soon, she spent all her time being high, just so she could escape reality. Just so she wouldn't realize that the man she brought close to Souta and I, was the man who was hurting us.

He yelled at us everyday. Sometimes he got so mad, he'd hit us. We started having to be homeschooled a week after he began getting physical. The bruises were getting harder to explain and he didn't want anyone to guess what he was doing. So, we had to stay home. That's when things went the worst. I'd rather have hidden each of my bruises rather than staying home with him. Because being home with him is what destroyed Souta and I the most...

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize that your past was that bad... You never mentioned it, so I just assumed that you missed your brother that much... I'm so sorry, Kagome." Inuyasha tells me. He hugs me tightly, probably trying to comfort the tears away.

But, there's no comforting someone with a tangled mess. I still have to straiten it out, and this isn't helping. It's just making me more hesitant on asking for help. I don't want to tell him, but I know I should. I need to tell someone soon, because it's ready to spill out of me. I've come close to talking and telling people what happened too much. I'm going to have to do something about it.

Perhaps some old advice will still work for me...

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_Just because I can't talk doesn't mean I'm deaf. And just because my sign language doesn't make sense doesn't mean I'm dumb. It means that I'm taking notice of my disorganized brain. I need something to straiten myself out. A diary works! So, now that I can tell something, everything will be fine!_

* * *

Has anyone ever seen _Shaun of the Dead_? I was watching some of that with my dad, and it's creepy, yet funny. These guys are totally oblivious to the zombies that are trying to eat them. Well, they're oblivious in the beginning. 

I had to stop updating in the middle of the chapter so dad and I could play Halo 2. Sorry, I just felt like saying that...

ScariMoi: Thank you for saying that! I feel so special that you've complimented me... -sniffle-

aGreatPenName: I usually don't do Inu/Kag fanfictions. I'm more of a Sess/Kag person, but I felt like doing more of them. My friend was giving me the shame finger for doing an odd pairing. I'm working on Inu/Sango (but it's not going good), so I cna have more strange pairings. Still, I'm glad that I entertained you!

**_This is for you all to read, well... Only if you like this story. I have finished typing all the chapters (there are 15 chapters total), and now it's up to you. I will give you chapters upon counting reviews. So, as long as you review, you'll get chapters. Finals or not..._**

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **80 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	9. Secret Words

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks  
_(Diary Entry)- Beginning/End of diary entires

**_O.D'd means over-dosed, to those of you who don't know._**

**Best of You  
**Chapter 9: Secret Words

But, there's no comforting someone with a tangled mess. I still have to straiten it out, and this isn't helping. It's just making me more hesitant on asking for help. I don't want to tell him, but I know I should. I need to tell someone soon, because it's ready to spill out of me. I've come close to talking and telling people what happened too much. I'm going to have to do something about it.

Perhaps some old advice will still work for me...

- - -

This feels so stupid in so many ways. I can't believe I'm doing this. It's childish, and I doubt that it'll do any good. Still, if she thought it helped, I can at least try. I don't have anything to lose, right?

"That'll be nine dollars and thirty-eight cents." The cashier tells me. Okay, maybe that's the only thing I have to lose. I hand her the exact change, take the bag, and leave. I guess it's not that bad to lose nine dollars. Okay, call it ten dollars... Still, it's only ten dollars. Perhaps this will help me.

For ten dollars, I'll do anything for help. Just as long as I've heard it works. And the old therapist of mine said that it would work. So, I drive back to the club. I sit down on one of the beanbag chairs, and pull out my new friend. I guess I shouldn't be calling non-living items friends. That's just pathetic.

I take the keys and unlock this thing. After it's open, I smile. I'm going to act like a little girl in hopes that it'll help me get all these feelings out. So, I leave the diary on the table and go to my office. I set the keys in the drawer, then return to my table. I'll leave the diary under my bed, just to be sure that no one will find it.

The last thing I want is for someone to discover my secret words. Then they'd know everything that my real words refuse to tell. They'd know what my mind remembered every day.

So, I pull out a pen and begin to write in my diary. I guess things will be easier to deal with once I get all this down on paper. I just hope that no one will discover my diary. That no one will discover my secret words. I think that's what I'll write on the cover of this diary.

( Open Diary Entry )

_June 28th-_

_Well, I bought a diary. I guess there's a slight chance that it will help with what I'm struggling with... But, I still have doubts. My biggest fear is that someone will find this, and they'll know everything I've hidden for the past... It's almost been fifteen years of silence. It'll be fifteen years in Auguest..._

_So, this is where I'm putting my past. Instead of burying it with my family, I will write it down. Then I'll read this whenever I feel the urge to. I don't know why I'd want to do that, though..._

_Father was a drunk. Sure, he died when I was four. I remember that much about him. Mom told me when I was eight that he died from being drunk. He was walking through the streets, on his way to come home, when he bumped into a guy. Since he was drunk, he started pissing the guy off intentionally. The guy pulled out a gun and shot him nine times._

_Mom was good to Souta and I in the beginning. She worked two jobs. Three during the summer. Grandma Kaede always babysat us. She told us old stories of times when things were good. When non-existant villagers only worried about the loss of their child._

_But, mom didn't stay good. She soon began to need help with raising us, mainly Souta. She couldn't teach him boy things like a father could. She started looking around for a boyfriend. She found a few, but they backed off once they knew of Souta and I. Then, she met the man who started abusing us._

_Naraku._

_He was a drug dealer. He made a lot of money, and mom was his escape ticket from the cops. Mom didn't realize what he did to us in the beginning. When she was gone, he'd use the spare key and let himself in. Then he'd wait for us to get home. When we did, he'd yell at us._

_Soon, he managed to convince mom that he loved us. She let him in, and he began to introduce her into the world of drugs. That's when she wasn't our mother. She was the drug-addict who slept on our couch and smoked grass all day._

_She started getting more and more addicted over time. For ten months, she was under a constant high. She lost her job, so we had to depend on Naraku to take care of us. Souta and I didn't like him, because of what he did to us. When mom found out, she began to get high even more. She was trying to escape the fact that she let this man get close to us._

_Naraku killed Souta. I remember it clearly. I got home, and he was there. I went to the kitchen to make food for him, since that always eased up the beatings. I came in with a plate of food for him. His eyes dialated, and that's when I realized he was a half demon. He'd been losing control to his demon side, which is the side that hurt us. It was the side that he hid from mom in the beginning of their relationship._

_He had Souta by the hair. Souta's nose was bleeding, and Naraku kept slamming his head into the ground. I dropped the plate and tried to stop him. I couldn't do anything. Then Souta's head began bleeding badly. That's when Naraku left to get the blood off of himself._

_Souta and I exchanged a few more words before he left me. He told me that he looked up to me, and that he loved me very much. I told him that I didn't want him to go. That it'd ruin my life. Then, he hugged me. I bit my lip and told him that he didn't have to hang onto this world. That he'd only be in more pain if he stayed. I told him that, even though I'd be lonely, that I respected his wish for dying._

_He was in a lot of pain at the time. More would have come if he fought for life. I knew that, and so did he. So, he smiled his award-winning smile once more, as his last breath left his body._

_Mom died five weeks later. She O.D'd on drugs. Then, because Naraku convinced her to, he got custody of me. Grandma Kaede was dead by then, so she couldn't care for me. Naraku began heavy abuse on me. I was already homeschooled at that point. When he first started to physically abuse Souta and I, we went to strict homeschooling._

_So, everyday for the next four or five years, I lived at home, and respected his wishes. I absorbed his abuse as much as I could. He even raped me on many occasions. If I was extremely 'bad' in his eyes, he'd bring a few buddies along. They inflicted pain on me in as many ways as they could._

_As soon as I was old enough, I moved out. I took my mother's money from his bank account, and bought the club, which became my home._

_Then I reported his abuse to the police. He was put in prison for eight years, and then got out early. He's out now, but I don't know where. He's probably with my ex-boyfriend, planning on how to bring me pain. Or doing it on his own._

_While being homeschooled, I went shopping for food. That's where I met Kouga. He was really nice at first. He referred to me as "his woman", which was okay at first Then he began to get more and more possessive of me. When I wasn't at home, I had to tell Kouga._

_He and Naraku never met. Both of them believed that only they could own me. If they met, they'd fight to the death. The survivor would yell at me for having someone else._

_So, now you know the memories I have. They haunt me to no end. Getting drunk never helps. I won't do drugs. Even though my mom and I weren't close in the end, I'm not doing drugs for her. I'm showing her that I can do what she did, or better._

_And the necklace around my neck. It's a small locket. It's rusty, and I'm not sure if it even opens anymore. It's Souta's birthday gift to me the year before we met Naraku. The year before my world crashed down and I lost everything._

_The year before I died..._

( Close Diary Entry )

I close my diary and wipe the warm tears that have made lines on my face. I can't believe I just let all that out. I take the lock and close it. I'm going to tell Sango about this, so she'll know that I'm starting to do better. Since she's not working here anymore, I'll tell Miroku. He can relay a message.

I walk up to him as he messes with our music. I smile at his goofy style of working then tap him on the shoulder. He looks at me for a while, waiting for me to tell him what I'm here for.

_"Tell Sango... Tell her that I have a diary now. That I finally spoke the words I won't tell anyone else."_ I signal. He nods then I leave. I place my diary on my office desk and begin to work on paychecks. I have other things I can work on, but this seems to suit me the best. Besides, I haven't worked on them in a few days. Someone's going to need money soon.

My secret words are sealed off behind a lock. That lock is both in my mind, and on this new diary. I have my devistating history in here. The most devistating of it isn't the fact that it happened. It's the fact that, if I do get married, that the one sacred thing I could offer my husband... It's gone.

I'm not pure like I used to be. There's no innocence left in my body or my mind. That's what devistates me about my past. That's why I can't tell anyone what happened. Because, if they discover that I'm not as pure and innocent like they think, then they'll run from me. They may tell other people.

So, I have to take away the chance that it can even happen. I have to lock up my words...

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_Okay, a diary wasn't a bad idea. Writing down my history wasn't a bad idea. Putting a lock on my diary wasn't a bad idea. Having the key in my desk drawer wasn't a bad idea... Leaving it in my club was a **really** bad idea. So, now that my diary is gone, what will happen? Who found it, anyway? Probably the next person with a major trauma._

* * *

More chapters for you to chew on. Good for you, since I'm too sick to chew on anything. Wonder why they're still making me go to school... 

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **90 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	10. Panic Attack

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks  
_(Diary Entry)Beginning/End of diary entires

**_This chapter is sligtly short. Sorry, but I ran out of things to put in it... Oh, five more chapters until this is done!_**

**Best of You  
**Chapter 10: Panic Attack

I'm not pure like I used to be. There's no innocence left in my body or my mind. That's what devistates me about my past. That's why I can't tell anyone what happened. Because, if they discover that I'm not as pure and innocent like they think, then they'll run from me. They may tell other people.

So, I have to take away the chance that it can even happen. I have to lock up my words...

- - -

I can't believe that I was so stupid. I can't believe that I did this! I'm the stupidest person on the planet, right now! This isn't funny **at all**. I can't even settle down enough to eat! Thanfully, it's Sunday. The club is closed on Sundays, so that gives me time to ask some of my employees what happened.

The club may be closed, but everyone who wants to work is welcome. Miroku has to work, since I can't live without music. He just happens to be really good with the music, too.

I walk up to Miroku, flailing my hands about. I'm not even sure what words my hands are saying, which is good. I don't think he knows either.

"Calm down, Kagome!" He tells me. I take a deep breath then feel all the panic inside of me begin to well up. If the music he has on were loud like it is on club days, I'd be turning it off. Thankfully, it's quiet enough to where it's only annoying me and not pissing me off.

"What's going on? You aren't even calm enough to do sign language enough!" He tells me. I take a deep breath once more, trying to calm down the panic that's welled up inside of me.

_"Remember the diary I told you about?"_ I ask him.

"Yeah, what about it?" He questions. I feel like screaming, but I'm not going to. I'm going to have enough control to keep my voice quiet. I'm going to be quiet, no matter what...

_"IT'S FUCKING GONE! THE KEYS AND MY DIARY ARE GONE! MY DEVISTATING HISTORY IS IN THAT, AND IT'S MISSING!" _I shout with my hands. He clasps my hands together then hugs me. If I weren't so freaked out, then I'd assume he was just trying to get my ass. But, he's been controlling himself since he got married. Sango says that he just grabs her ass more.

"Kagome, calm down. Where'd you leave it?" He asks me. I pull my hands from his grasp so I can speak, trying to calm my nerves. I think I'm hyperventilating.

_"My desk. I left my diary ON MY DESK. My keys were in my desk drawer. Both are gone... SOMEONE STOLE MY DIARY AND MY KEYS!"_ I flail my arms about to get the point across.

"Calm down. You look like a bird." He tells me. I look at him angrily then storm off. If he can't help me, I'll find someone else who can. On my way to speak to a janitor, I grab a cup of Captain Morgan. This will help me calm down. I'm not going to get drunk on it, I'm just trying to get myself to **chill**.

I see my janitor then point to Miroku. When he doesn't get it, I drag him to Miroku. No one else knows sign language, and I can't possibly tell him with my voice what's going on. I get Miroku's attention, not caring that he's probably upset for being interrupted again.

_"Tell him about the diary. Ask him if he saw it."_ I demand Miroku. He nods then turns to the very confused and scared janitor.

"Ms. Higurashi lost her diary. It was on her office desk, and the keys were in the drawer. Have you seen it?" Miroku asks calmly. He only refers to me in a professional manner if I'm stressed. That should be enough to get the point across to our janitor.

"No, I haven't. I didn't clean her office yesterday. It was clean when I went in, so I didn't bother." He says. I go to the elevator, going up to my room. I'm going to email some of my employees to see if they know what happened to it.

While the computer is starting, I get more rum into my system. It's helping, since I'm starting to calm down. I'm still frantic, of course, but at least I'm not going to put strain on my heart. I set the cup in my sink then get some soda from the fridge. Forget trying to stop drinking this stuff. I'm desperate for it in times like this.

I check my email, since there's a new message. I doubt that anyone is trying to sell me things. That junk goes in my bulk folder. When my inbox loads, I realize that it's Inuyasha's email address. I open it, taking deep breathes to calm myself down.

_Kagome,  
Please come in for a session today. I need to ask you a question or two. It's urgent. I'll be in my office around one in the afternoon._

_- Inuyasha_

I delete the email then look at my clock. I should be leaving now if I want to get there on time. I turn the computer off then go downstairs. I wave to Miroku and leave. I'm sure he's confused as to where I'm going. He knows that my past is bad, but he doesn't know how bad. All he knows is that I will look for this diary nonstop until I find it.

And I'm leaving the building. So, he's confused. Hell, I'm confused. He's the only one who knew about the diary yesterday. I had him tell Sango, so now she knows too. Did it get through the grapevine and someone else find out?

Oh no. What if Naraku found out and he took it! I can feel my pulse speed up as my stomach starts to turn. I really hope that he hasn't found my diary. He'll get mad then hurt me for saying lies about him. They aren't lies, but he doesn't want anyone to know the truth. Not even those few pieces of paper.

After all, that's a lot of things that could get him in trouble if I were to show it to the judge. But, I won't. I fear Naraku and don't want to make any more problems than I have to.

I walk into the therapy building and into Inuyasha's office. The first thing that I notice is his empty licorice dish. He keeps it stocked no matter what, so why is he out?

Inuyasha comes into this side of his office, chewing on one. I guess he just finished the last one or something. As he chews on it, he dumps a new bag of licorice into his candy dish.

_"Stressed?"_ I inquire. He looks at me, as if thinking I'm the most crazy person in the world.

"Stressed would be a hell of an understatement." He tells me. I nod my head slowly then sit down on his couch. He takes a few more pieces of licorice, holding them in the hand that's free.

"So... How are you doing?" He asks.

_"Tipsy."_ I tell him. I'm sure he can smell my breath and know that I was having a small amount of alcohol. It's not enough to make me tipsy, like I said, but I'm letting him know that I'm under the influence.

"Have some rum to relaxyour nerves? I can smell the tension in your body." He comments. I shrug my shoulders.

"What's got you so nervous?"

_"My diary was stolen. The reason I don't talk is in there, and so are some other things that I don't want other people to know. It's gone, and so are the keys. Someone is probably reading it right now."_ I tell him. He nods then looks down at his empty hand. Both him and I could have sworn there was licorice in it a few seconds ago.

"Relax. I'm sure that no one's reading it." He tells me. I lean against the back of the couch, trying to relax. I'm sure he's trying to relax too. Why are both of us so jumpy?

"Okay, here's my first question..." He trails off. He asks the question, and my heart seems to stop for a few seconds. After it starts beating again, I look away from him. I can't believe this. There's no way that this can be true. How... Why...

**What is going on?**

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_I hate him for doing it, but I love him for it too. Who would care so much that they'd have done something that's garunteed to piss me off? Therapists can't do this, legally. So does he have alternative reasons for it, or does he just not like to obey the rules of his job? I can only hope that I'm right on this..._

* * *

Crazed Up Chick: Wow. You're very smart (or reading my mind) to know that! But you can't tell anyone, okay? I don't want to ruin the surprise for the rest of the readers! 

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **100 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	11. Rules of Therapy

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks  
_(Diary Entry)Beginning/End of diary entires

**Best of You  
**Chapter 11: Rules of Therapy

"Okay, here's my first question..." He trails off. He asks the question, and my heart seems to stop for a few seconds. After it starts beating again, I look away from him. I can't believe this. There's no way that this can be true. How... Why...

**What is going on?**

- - -

I stare at him for a long time, wondering if this is true. He can't... There's no way that he could have just asked the question I heard. I'm so nervous about my missing diary, that I must have misheard him. That's all...

"Kagome... What is so devistating about what's in your past?" He asks me again. I try to get my lungs to work properly as I stare at the ground. I open my mouth, nearly letting words out. I close it quickly, deciding that it's the last thing he deserves right now.

_"You broke the rules."_ I signal to him. The anger and pain in me is starting to surface again. I look away from him, trying to keep my tears hidden from him.

"Rules? What rules?" He asks me.

_"The rules of therapy." _I reply quickly. I'm almost amazed that he managed to tell what I was saying when I signaled it so fast.

"Rules of therapy?" He echoes. "There are no rules of therapy, Kagome. The only rule is to help the patient. I didn't take the diary from you so I could get you better and get a new client." He tells me. I look at him, wondering if he can read minds. Some demons can, and I'm beginning to think that he's one of them.

_"You stole it!"_ I signal in fury.

"I borrowed it." He hands my diary and keys back to me. "See? I gave it back, too." He adds.

_"You still stole it... How did you even know that I had it? Only Miroku knew."_

"Well, Miroku found out when you wanted him to pass the message along to Sango. You said something about the reason you don't talk or the reason you don't trust people was in the diary. So, he told me about it. He knew that I..." He stops himself from finishing.

_"You what? He knew that you were trying to get rid of me? I'm unfit for therapy. That's why I got passed on to you. The therapists give up on me because I don't talk!"_ I signal angrily. He gets up from his seat then holds my two hands together.

"That's not it, Kagome!" He barks angirly. He silences a few seconds, probably attempting to calm himself down from snapping at me like that.

"That's not it at all. I told you that I don't force my patients to speak. I know that they have reasons for not talking. Even though I may not agree with the reasons, I respect their wishes not to speak. I don't push my patients into talking if they don't want to. You know that." He says. I jerk my hands away from him so I can reply.

_"If you don't push your patients into talking, then why'd you get my diary? It's because you're just trying to get us better so you can get paid more and so they'll recommend you to friends!" _I'm sure that, if I was willing to talk, that I'd be screaming at the top of my lungs.

"That's not it, Kagome. Calm down... I took your diary so I would have a chance at understanding why you don't talk. I want to understand your reasoning on this lock you've put over your words. That's why I took it." He tells me. I feel all the tension leaving my body, but I'm not willing to let go of it. I want to remain mad at him, but I can't.

I guess... He was trying to help me. I understand that. Is that why I can't stay mad at him? Or is it because he looks hurt by the words I'm giving him? He... Could he be upset over the fact that I got mad at him?

_"Thank you..."_ I finally signal after a few seconds in a fight with msyelf.

"For what?" He asks.

_"For caring enough to do that. I'm sure you knew I'd be upset... But you did it because you cared anyway."_ I signal in reply. Without another thought, I throw my arms around him, feeling the best I've felt in almost fifteen years. Inuyasha slowly wraps his arms around me in return, relaxing me.

"Kagome... You know that I love you." He says. My heart seems to stop as I look at his golden eyes. He slowly brings his face closer to mine, and I don't mind for some crazy reason.

Years ago, I made myself commit to something. I'd never care for someone. If they started to care for me, I'd remove myself from the situation. I couldn't risk anyone knowing about what was in my past. I couldn't risk someone hating me for it. And, somehow, Inuyasha doesn't seem to mind. He seems so understanding about my past.

Just as our lips are about to touch, someone knocks on the door. I jump, hitting his head with mine. He falls backwards, clutching his head where I bumped into it. I hold my head in pain as the door seems to open.

"Inuyasha, your patient has to go. She got an urgent call from someone. He said that she should hurry." The assistant tells us. I look at Inuyasha then stand up. My vision is slightly blurred from bumping into him, but I can see enough to keep my walking balanced.

The assistant takes me out to the man who called. He's leaning against a black car, and I don't recognize him.

"Do I know you?" I ask curiously as I approach him.

"Oh, I think you do, Kagome. You know me _very_ well... Enough to where you almost needed an abortion." He says. My eyes widen and I turn around to leaev. He grabs my arm roughly and pulls me against him. I want to cry, but I feel as if all the energy in my body is gone.

"I'm glad to see you again." He says. I try to get out of his grasp, but it's no use. He's got me firmly.

"Naraku, stop it!" I shout at him. He opens his car door, shoving me in. He duct tapes my mouth closed and ties my hands behind my back. Then my feet are tied together.

"Be a good girl, Kagome. You wouldn't want to ruin the reunion party my buddies and I are having." He says in a deep voice. I struggle more, trying to get away from this past. I don't want to end up like I was in the past. I left home for a reason. He's the reason. He shouldn't be allowed to come back and just do this to me!

Before I can struggle too much more, everything goes black. I feel like I'm floating through space. There's no telling where I am, but I can tell I'm moving. Am I moving, or is it a fabrication of my mind? After so long of trying to wake up, everything is gone.

I slip in and out of consiousness. I don't know how long I was asleep. The voices around me get loud then quiet. I can't tell what they're saying. Everytime I try to, they seem to get further and further away. I try to push myself towards reality. Towards waking up, but it's too hard.

Souta must've had this problem when he was dying. I bet that he wasn't able to keep everything strait. I consider letting go of this life, but something won't let me. I have to be the godmother to Sango and Miroku's baby. I have to keep my club running...

I have to stay alive for Inuyasha, don't I?

It's amazing how I don't know what's going on or where I am, yet I know that I'm on the verge of death. I try to move my body, but none of it seems to be responding. That's not a good thing at all. I manage to move my fingers on my right hand. I can't even feel my fingers on my left hand.

This is starting to work, since I'm beginning to hear the voices more clearly now.

"How'd you know about this, Mr. Taisho?" A woman asks.

"She told me that a Naraku character hurt her before. When she went out to meet someone, she screamed that name in terror. I followed the car until it stopped." I hear Inuyasha reply. What happened to me?

I can remember Naraku putting me in his car. He made it sound like he and his buddies were going to rape me again. I remember being duct taped and bound. I remember a sharp pain to my head, and... That's all. The rest of things are blurry. What happened to me!

I can feel something around me moving. I can't even tell what directions it's moving, but just that it is moving. Then it comes to a stop. Something touches my head, but... It doesn't feel like it is touching my head. my body feels so distant, I can't be sure that this isn't a dream.

"How is she doing?" I hear Inuyasha ask. I slowly lift my one good hand, reaching towards his voice. When I feel his hand grasp mine, I try to smile. It hurts badly, so I give up. My arm relaxes, but I don't pull away from his hand. That's the only thing that's confirming reality to me

"Well... These are the x-rays. This bone right here is broken pretty badly. We'll have to put it in a cast for two months..." Is all I hear. I know thery're talking, but I can't concentrate on it.

"She'll live, right?" I manage to hear.

"She should. Right now, she's doing so badly, I don't know. I guess it's up to her willpower." The woman finishes. Inuyasha's hand seems to grip mine tighter, and I can hear something scraping against tile.

"Kagome, please... You have to live. I don't want you to die. I can't let you go. I'm too selfish to let you go. Please... Please make it, Kagome." I hear him say. It sounds like he's crying, but I can't be too sure. Before long, I feel myself slipping away from the rest of things. I feel the sense of reality being altered.

I don't know if I want to live...

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_Okay, so this isn't so bad. But getting these feelings out is hurting me like hell. There's no reason for me to do it this way, but I feel as if it'll make him more pleased. So, I do one thing that was forbidden from me. And, while doing that, I'll do the second thing that I swore I'd never do again..._

* * *

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **110 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	12. Exposed

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks  
_(Diary Entry)Beginning/End of diary entires

**_Did you all know both Chapter One and Chapter Eleven have 1,950 words? Exactly that number for both of 'em. Funny, huh?_**

**_I know ya'll want to know what happened to Kagome. I promise that things will be okay... Well, maybe they won't. Depends on if I'm in a good mood or a bad one._**

**Best of You  
**Chapter 12: Exposed

"Kagome, please... You have to live. I don't want you to die. I can't let you go. I'm too selfish to let you go. Please... Please make it, Kagome." I hear him say. It sounds like he's crying, but I can't be too sure. Before long, I feel myself slipping away from the rest of things. I feel the sense of reality being altered.

I don't know if I want to live...

- - -

I open my eyes wearily, feeling like I'm about to die. I've felt this way for the last week. I can wake up now, which is a good thing. My left arm is broken. I can't communicate, since a lot of signals require two hands. So, I've been keeping silent the past week. That's fine, because I wasn't going to start talking anyway.

I have a green cast on it. Miroku and Sango have signed it. Inuyasha put his initials and the words "Love you" on it. He makes me want to cry. Of course, I hardly have energy to do that.

Slowly, I'm being able to piece together what happened. I don't know if this is really what happened, but it's all I can piece together with my new-found memories.

I **think** that Naraku did kidnap me. I'm pretty sure that he almost had his way with me again, but he didn't. Inuyasha says that he found Naraku about two seconds before he would've raped me again. Naraku beat me up before that. I'm pretty sure his friends did too, but I don't know for sure.

I'm black and blue now. I don't think there's a single patch of tanned skin left. My stomach has a foot-shaped bruise on it. It's got red in the bruise too. I'm sure whoever stepped on me broke some blood vessels in the process. Either that or it's something else.

I'm doing good, considering how badly I came in. The nurse tells me that I had gone into a coma. My body was hardly even able to function when I came in. She said that my digestive track was misplaced from when he stepped on me. But, it got better, I assume. I can eat fine, and I couldn't in the beginning.

Inuyashasaid that I have a damn good excuse not to be in therapy. Miroku says that he's putting together a video for me to watch in here. I don't know what he's thinking of doing, though. Sango told me that they're going to have a bunch of things dedicated to me and he's going to get help with paying for the bills.

Despite the fact that I have a lot of money, it's not enough. It gets very expensive to get all these things treated. So, he's going to raise the money with the club-goers. Sango said that was his plan. And that he'd only be spinning songs that I liked. Since I have a lot of favorites, I doubt he'll run out.

Sango also started to do the paychecks for me. I think it's kind of her, since she's not getting paid for it. I'll make sure to give her a gift once I get enough money for it.

Inuyasha comes in, snapping me from my thoughts. He has something in his hand, and he's smiling.

"Hey, how you feeling?" He asks. He's asked that every day for the past week, and I don't feel any better. Well, except for today. I just found out about Miroku's heart-warming plans thirty minutes ago. That put me in a really good mood.

I give him a thumbs up in response. I need my other hand to do sign language. It's driving me nuts not to be able to communicate at all. It'll be like this for a while, which is an even worse idea. Inuaysha sits at my bedside, stroking my non-casted hand.

"I'm glad. I'll pay as much of your medical bills as I can." He says. I stare at him then start shaking my head. He can't do that! This is going to get really expensive!

"Please... I also have a question to ask you. Be honest, okay?" He warns. I nod my head, watching as he takes a deep breath. He has a piece of licorice in his teeth. At least that tells me that he's not smoking. Of course, if he was, I'd smell it.

"Kagome... There's no easy way to break this to you." He starts. My heart slowly stops as I imagine what he could be ready to say. It almost sounds like he's going to tell me that he's giving up on me for therapy.

"Kagome, I would like you to be my wife." He says. I smile widely as he opens a small box. In it is a small diamond ring. I nod my head rapidly, feeling tears come out of my eyes. He slips it over my right finger (since my left is hidden by a cast), then kisses my hand. He kisses my lips, smiling like there's nothing wrong in the world.

"I love you, Kagome." He says. I take a deep breath, gathering myself.

"I... I love you... too." I manage to squeak. I haven't spoken in so long, my voice is cracking. My throat feels like I have a sore throat, just from that much of words. I think that this was the perfect time to speak. Inuaysha's eyes fill with tears as he hugs me.

"You're safe now. I'll keep Naraku and anyone else who wants to hurt you away." He says. I hug him with my mobile arm before resting once again.

"Thank you... Inuyasha..." I choke out. Things are hard for me to say, since I haven't been speaking for fifteen years. I guess it's a good thing that I had these bad experiences. If I didn't, then I would have kept from talking and never met Inuyasha.

"So, when do you want to get married?" He asks me. His eyes seem to light up at the mentioning of us getting married. He must be really excited over this.

"When my cast is off. I don't want to be in a wedding dress and a cast." I tell him jokingly. He smiles then kisses my head.

"Thank you so much for talking." He says. I nod my head, then point to something.

"Can... Can you get my diary for me?" I question scratchily. My voice is going to need several cough drops before it can function normally. It's kind of funny. I haven't spoken in so long, I forgot what I sounded like. I wouldn't be able to recognize my voice if it weren't so scratchy.

Inuyasha hands me my diary, and a pen. I make a motion for him to leave, and he does. He kisses my head, then leaves. I look down at my diary, and begin to write slowly. I'm not even supposed to be doing this, since I'm still in bad condition. But, I feel like I'll never remember how I'm feeling now.

( Open Diary Entry )

_I don't know what today is, so don't expect me to write it down... All I know is that today is a Sunday. If I'm lucky, I'll be discharged from the hospital before tomorrow. Then I can get back to work. Believe it or not, I'm actually anticipating writing more paychecks. Maybe it's not the most fun thing in the world, but I feel so happy, that I want to do them._

_Well, I broke two rules today alone. The first one was talking. I made a rule for myself to never talk again. I'd never be happy enough to talk to anyone after the day that Souta died. So, I talked today._

_The second rule is the worst of the two. I started caring for someone. After Souta's death, I made myself disconnect from people. I was afraid that, if I trusted them, that Naraku would hurt them. Or Kouga would hurt them. But, I knew I was bad luck. So, I tried not to trust people._

_Not only am I trusting someone, I'm in love with him. My therapist (who acts so rude somtimes, you'd think he wasn't one at all), is now my fiance. It's so strange for me to believe that I'm going to be married to someone. We've been close for a while, but he just proposed to me today._

_I feel like I should have said 'no' to him. I mean, I hardly know if my feelings for him are even true. I guess they are, since I'm still happy about it. I haven't started regretting it yet, so I think that there are no doubts about my love for him._

_Now that I'm engaged, I start to think of marriage. And when I think of marriage, I start to question kids. I mean, they're cute, but I don't know if Inuyasha wants them or not. Personally, I'd love to have them. Kids are so cute, and they're funny. I don't know if Inuyasha feels the same way, though._

_I guess he probably doesn't. The way he acts around people is a little short-tempered. Imagine how horrible that could go with a child. He could accidentally yell at them, and they wouldn't know what they did wrong. I guess I should just consider making a kid area in the club so I could hang out with them._

_Wait. Kids don't mix with clubs and party-goers. Whoops. I guess... I don't know what to do. The idea of being a wife is making me want to be a mother as well..._

_I'd ask Inuyasha, but I'm too shy to do that. I don't want to hear his reaction. If he's upset, then I'll feel so horrible. That's the only reason I wouldn't ask... Well, the only reason aside from the fact that it'd just be an akward question to ask. I can imagine it now..._

_"Hey, Inuyasha. I have a question!" I ask him casually while he's reading the newspaper or something. He's drinking a cup of coffee, too._

_"What is it?" He asks me calmly._

_"Well, I want kids! Do you want them?" I ask cheerfully. I canimagine him spitting out his coffee and staring at me like I was crazy..._

_Maybe asking isn't a good idea._

_Whoops! Gotta go. The nurse is coming in so she can see if I'm healthy enough to be let out. I think I am, but they have to run SO MANY expensive tests just to find out. (The club is about to go out of business because of how expensive these places are. I don't have insurance for myself because I never had health problems...)_

_- Kagome_

( Close Diary Entry )

I close my book and stuff it under the covers. The pen drops somewhere to the bedside as the nurse comes in. She's cheery, and I'm confused as to why she'd be smiling like this.

"Hello, Kagome! Well, I have some good news for you!" She says. As soon as she tells me the information, my heart stops.

This is too good to be true. After years of trying to go against the grain and fight my bad luck, everything is falling into place. I don't understand why it's all working out like this, though. I mean, I don't get good luck. I've always gotten the rotten end of things. Suddenly, I'm getting all the things I want.

I hope things aren't going good before they go bad. That'd ruin my happiness...

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_I can't believe I just did this. I've started singing in the shower, as if my life were normal. Even though my voice is scratchy from being under-used, I was singing. This is wonderful in Inuyasha's eyes, since he thinks he's helped. I don't know what's caused it. I just feel as though all my problems are gone, like the memories are something I can laugh at..._

* * *

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **120 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	13. Breakthrough

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks  
_(Diary Entry)Beginning/End of diary entires

**_Well, seems that I'm in a good mood right now. You guys are lucky. If I had tried working on this chapter right after school, Kagome woulda gone through HELL. I was sooo mad, I wanted to take my anger out on someone. Thankfully, my headache made it too hard for me to do that._**

**_This chapter is short, and I apologize for that... I'll try to make the next one longer to compensate. That fair enough?_**

**Best of You  
**Chapter 13: Breakthrough

"Hello, Kagome! Well, I have some good news for you!" She says. As soon as she tells me the information, my heart stops.

This is too good to be true. After years of trying to go against the grain and fight my bad luck, everything is falling into place. I don't understand why it's all working out like this, though. I mean, I don't get good luck. I've always gotten the rotten end of things. Suddenly, I'm getting all the things I want.

I hope things aren't going good before they go bad. That'd ruin my happiness...

- - -

"You... You mean I can go home right now?" I repeat. She nods her head then takes the needle out of my wrist. She tapes a cotton ball over it, then lowers the bars for me to get out.

"I hope you'll get better. Oh, do me a favor. Take care of your cast. Take it to the doctor to be checked in a month. In two months, you can have it off." She tells me. How annoying. Two months of being in a cast? I've heard that they're uncomfortable. I can only hope that mine is tolerable.

Two months seems to fly by once you start to see life the descent way. I have a bag over my cast right now, and I have yet to take it off. I just got out of the shower, and I'm still drying myself with one hand.After completing this task, I pull the wet bag off and set it on my counter. Unless it grows holes in the bottom, I'll keep re-using it.

I turn around, completely naked, and see Inuyasha. I nearly scream and jump backwards to distance us.

"Hi." He tells me casually. I cover myself up with my dampened towel as my cheeks begin to warm up.

"What? You can't come in here while I'm not dressed!" I scold him.

"I can. We're about to get married, after all... So, what song was that?" He asks. I stare at him for a while then leave the bathroom in search of my clothes.

"What song?" I echo.

"Yeah. What song were you singing? That's the first time I've heard you sing in the shower." He tells me.

Inuyasha has been staying with me since I got the cast on. He claims it's because he wants tomake sure I'm comfortable, but I think he's using an excuse to be close to me. I don't mind, of course. Some of my stuff has already been moved, so it looks a bit empty.

Inuyasha and I both decided that we're going to move into his house soon. I'll take the second story and turn it into some more club property, rather than my personal quarters. I don't know what else to put up here, though. I mean, it's a big space, but I'm running out of things that can go in a club. Perhaps I should do an entire re-modeling thing for the club... That'd go pretty good, actually. I just need to make sure I have the money to do it.

"I don't know the name of the song. I'm sure you wouldn't recognize it by my singing either, since I was doing pretty bad." I tell Inuyasha. He _trots_ over to me and helps me find clothes. It's so embarassing to need help with what's easy to wear. Most of my shirts were long-sleeved. Now I can't wear them since my cast makes me look like a dork in them.

"So, anything special planned for the club?" He asks me. I look at him suspiciously before shaking my head.

"No, today is just a normal day. I'm getting the cast off tomorrow, but that doesn't involve the club." I tell him.

"I think you're wrong." He says in my ear. I shiver then look up at him. He's already heading to the club floor, making me try to hurry in dressing. Damn cast. I can't wait to get the thing off. Right now, the worst thing in my life is when I have an itch. I can't stick anything down it (because I almost got something stuck a while ago), so I'm in agony while it itches like **crazy**.

I guess it's good that the only crisis I have right now is that my arm itches. It's much better than when my problems consisted of flashbacks... Even though I still get them, they don't feel as painful as they did before. Maybe it's because I managed to get over them enough to talk... Or maybe it's got to do with Inuyasha.

I know this must sound sappy, but I've started to feel a lot better since he and I got engaged. I mean, I don't have violent flashbacks anymore, I smile more... And my employees will tell you that I've started talking. That's Inuyasha's doing. I have no doubt in my mind that he caused it.

What could he have meant when he said that he thought something was going to happen with the club? I haven't been planning anything. Today's just another normal day for the day-clubbers. Inuyasha sounded like he had something up his sleeve, so I'll have to go look and see what's going on.

As I head downstairs, I see something on my coffee table. I pick up the mail, recognizing the hospital's address immediately. This must be the bill they've been promising to send me. I look at it and my heart nearly stops. I know that I was having a lot of problems with healing, but that much money... That much money can cover my club's fees to run (electricity and all) for a month!

It's almost enough to buy a new house. I set it down, suddenly feeling discouraged. I only have around half of the money. I don't know how else to pay for it. I can't let Inuyasha pay for it, I'd feel wrong. The only other way to get the money would be to sell off the club. But, I don't wantto do that...

I walk downstairs, my stomach tightening from the numbers I have just seen. I'm in so much trouble. I open my eyes to see a million people here. Usually, the club only has half this many people during the day. So... What's the occasion? Inuyasha steps forward, and I know he has something to do with this.

"Kagome... Miroku and Sango started a fundraiser for your hospital bills. They didn't think it'd do too well, since not a lot of people seem to know you in the club... But, they got enough money to pay for the bill twice." Inuyasha tells me. I feel my heart skip a few beats as I look at everyone. This can't be happening.

"You're joking, right?" I ask. I hope that they're not joking... What would I do with the other 150 grand that isn't needed for the bill?

"We're serious..." He says. I smile then hug Inuyasha tightly. He'll have to do, since I can't hug everyone else. After I let him go (just so he can breathe), I walk aruond the club, talking to other people. It turns out that a lot more of them are familiar with me than I thought. Most of them know me enough to be glad that I'm speaking again.

Even though I don't understand how they could have been aware of my non-speaking ways, I won't ask. I guess someone told them, or they just happened to notice on their own.

"Kagome!" Sango greets me. I hug her tightly, then loko around at all the people for a moment.

"Thank you so much for this, Sango... " I tell her. She points to Miroku, smiling.

"Thank him. He initiated the plan." She says. I look at Miroku, hesitating on what to do next. Finally, I hug him and thank him a million times.

"How did you know that I was worried about it?" I ask him curiously.

"Kagome, please. We've been friends since you were fifteen. I've learned to read your face expressions since your voice never told me anything." He says. I smile again then shake the tears away from my eyes.

"Thank you so much. It really does mean a lot to me." I tell him. Sango leans on my shoulder, and I suddenly feel like telling her something.

"Hey, Sango... Guess what?" I ask her.

"What?" She asks. I tell her the one thing that I was afraid to tell Inuyasha, and she squeels with excitement. I cover my ears, and Miroku grabs her shoulders. He must be trying to calm her down from the excitement.

Maybe Inuyasha doesn't know it yet, but I hope he doesn't mind. I mean, there's nothing horrible about it... Not in my eyes at least. I can only hope that he'll feel the same way that I feel. Or, even better, than he'll be willing to take part in this. I would love it if he could actually be a...

Well, I guess I need to tell him before Sango and Miroku do!

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_I'm really excited about this. I know that I have to tell Inuyasha before someone else does, but I don't think I can. I'm so nervous on how to ask him and what he'll say. So, I ask him... There's only good news behind his reply. I'm nervous about how to go about this, but I'm sure that things will be fine. Inuaysha will take care of me, like he promised... Right?_

* * *

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **130 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	14. Expected

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks  
_(Diary Entry)Beginning/End of diary entires

**Best of You  
**Chapter 14: Breakthrough

"What?" She asks. I tell her the one thing that I was afraid to tell Inuyasha, and she squeels with excitement. I cover my ears, and Miroku grabs her shoulders. He must be trying to calm her down from the excitement.

Maybe Inuyasha doesn't know it yet, but I hope he doesn't mind. I mean, there's nothing horrible about it... Not in my eyes at least. I can only hope that he'll feel the same way that I feel. Or, even better, than he'll be willing to take part in this. I would love it if he could actually be a...

Well, I guess I need to tell him before Sango and Miroku do!

- - -

"You are planning on having a child with Inuyasha?" Sango repeats in shock. I cover her mouth to keep her from saying it too loud then nod.

"Have you told him this? I'm sure he'll want to know." Miroku says. I look at him evilly before returning my gaze to Sango.

"I haven't told him yet. I don't really know how to go about it. What if he doesn't want a kid?" I ask. Miroku starts laughing quietly, and both Sango and I look at him.

"I don't think he'll mind _children_." Miroku says. I roll my eyes then slap him.

"Get your mind out of the gutter! Geez. You've known me for this long and you can't limit your perverted mind around me?" I ask sharply. Sango rubs my arm to get me to calm down. I take a deep breath then let it out slowly.

"I'm not going to be able to ask him... You know that, right?" I ask her nervously. She nods her head then hugs me for support.

"Just try. I'm sure he'll react better than you think." She reassures me. From the way she says it, I'd say that she knows something that I don't. Then again, I'm probably just overreacting. In fact, I'm positive that I'm overreacting. This is just in my mind.

"Well, I have to get Sango home. She's got no other way back. I heard that--" Miroku suddenly stops himself from speaking. I stare at him for a while before shrugging the thought off. He must've just realized how soon Sango wanted to be home or something. Because, instantly, he's dragging Sango towards the parking lot. I turn to find Inuyasha, but he's vanished too.

If I wasn't suspicious before, then I have a good reason to be like this now. What in the world is going on? Everyone is just... _vanishing_ into thin air. Okay, maybe they're vanishing into the parking lot (and other places), but they're still leaving. There something that I'm missing here, or is this just normal for them?

Wait a minute. What do any of them know about normal? Sango is a hard-ass woman who depends on herself. Miroku is a pervert with a wandering hand (he know keeps it to Sango's ass only). Inuyasha is... Well, no offense, but he's a half demon. I guess I'm not one to judge. I'm a mentally abused brat.

Wow. I make friends with abnormal people, don't I? Well, I don't mind. They're good friends, and that's all I'm really interested in.

I walk around the club floor, grabbing a small glass of Captain Morgan. Now, I'm not a drunk. I rarely have this stuff, even though it seems like I have it a lot recently. It just... I don't know how to explain it. It helps calm my nerves. And trust me, I've got nerves right now.

Inuyasha comes up to me and scares me silly. He hugs me from behind, causing me to jump and spill my drink. I'm upset at first, but Inuyasha kisses my frustration away.

"I want to take you somewhere." He says. I stare at him dumbly before finding the ability to nod my head. Perhaps this is what Miroku was trying to keep me from figuring out. It sounded like he was going to say that, until he dragged Sango away. Now I'm almost positive that's what he nearly said.

"Where?" I quesiton skepitcally. He shakes his head and puts a finger over his lips. I glare at him then follow as he takes me to his car. What could be so important that he's got to drag me away from my club? Are we going to pay the hospital bill or something?

No, we're not paying the bill. He takes me to a luxurious home, and we get out of the car to look at it. He walks me up to the house and he opens the door.

"Are you sure that it's legal for us to be here?" I question nervously. Inuyasha nods his head.

"I'm pretty damn sure. If it's not legal, then I'll have to look into this." He says. I toss this around in my head for a while. What makes him think that walking in on someone else's private property is legal? I'm so afraid that we're going to get thrown in jail for this.

He takes me through the rooms and shows me around. I feel like I'm about to buy a new house or something. Every room is empty, the carpets look new, and I can almost swear that I smell drying paint. Maybe it's just my imagination...

"So, what do you think?" Inuyasha asks. He stands in the center of the master bedroom, looking around.

"I think we need to leave before the owners of the place move in... We're gonna get in trouble." I tell him. I still feel scared that the cops will come and get mad at us for intruding. How can Inuyasha be so calm and causual about this?

"The owners are in this room right now, Kagome." He says. I spin around in a circle, trying to figure out where they are. When I realize what he means, I gasp loudly.

"You've got to be kidding, Inuyasha. You-- _We_ can't afford this!" I tell him. He comes up to me and puts a finger over my lips. I guess that it's the only way to make me calm down. There's no way that we'll be able to live here. It's got to be over a million dollars!

"My father owned it. He died, and this is what he gave to me. My _half_ brother got the successful business, I got the house. I got it a while ago, but I had some people come in and fix it up. This is going to be our home when we're married." He says. He hugs my waist and kisses my lips.

"And... When will that be?" I ask in a low tone. I feel like we should get married soon, but this cast isn't making it very easy.

"When you want to. If it were up to me, we'd have the liscense right now, but it's up to you." He says. I smile then rest my head against his chest.

"When I get my cast off, we can start planning the wedding..." I tell him quietly.

"Hey... Kagome... I need to ask you something." He says. I look up at him, taking mental note of how concerned he looks. Maybe concerned isn't the right word. Nervous does it more justice.

"What is it?" I ask. I feel like I'm about to fall asleep. Of couse, standing up in an empty room makes it much harder for me to do that.

"Well... If you..." He hesitates. "What do you think about having kids?" He finally manages to spit out. I stare at him for a while, wondering if I heard that right. I was going to ask him about it, but I guess he beat me to it. That's good, since I don't think that I could have dealt with the pressure of doing it myself.

"I'd love to have kids... I was going to ask you, but I haven't been able to work up the guts." I tell him. He smiles then hugs me closer. Then it hits me. He doesn't want one kid, he wants more than one. He wants kid**s**. Kids as in plural.

I've heard pregnancy is painful. First time will hurt the most, since my body hasn't experienced it before. Second time will hurt a lot, but not as much... So... How am I supposed to deal with the pain of this? My body suddenly starts to get weak as I imagine the pain. Before I know it, everything is black.

Hard times come with good times. Even though I may have had my own problems in the past, it's evened out now. Things are going to go good for a long time, I assume. My nightmares about Naraku and Kouga have stopped. I think most of that is due to the fact that Inuyasha is always in my house.

Inuyasha likes to protect me. He stays on the couch every night - he doesn't want the temptation of being in the same bed with me - and will bolt in the door if he hears me crying. That's the biggest reason I have for him loving me. When I do have my nightmares again, he cuddles me until I'm asleep again.

And, when I fall back asleep. There's no more nightmares, and no more pains of the past...

* * *

Next time on **The Best of You**...  
_(Epilogue. Kagome's diary entries)  
Things are so much more different than they were in the beginning. I've gone from the depressed mute, to a happy girl now. Life seems to be giving me a hand that I can play, or something like that. I'm scared, though. What could happen with all this good stuff? I have a feeling that it'll only stay good for so long... I have anxiety problems._

* * *

Wow. The story is coming to an end. Hard to believe, since I've spent only a few days actually typing it up (I just didn't post the chapters until I was working on chapter 11). 

_Next chapter requires... I think I need **140 **reviews before you can get the next chapter!_

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	15. New Life

**Summary:** Looking at Kagome Higurashi, you'd never know that she carried a secret storm. Her therapist suddenly quits on her, and she must go to find someone else to help her. She struggles to keep her new therapist out of her life. She tells him the best of her is gone. Why won't he believe it? Kagome's POV.

"Talking"  
_"Sign Language"  
Flashbacks  
_(Diary Entry)Beginning/End of diary entires

**_WARNING! This chapter has random entires from Kagome's diary. Some of them will be from when hermother will still be alive. Keep this in mind. Kagome started to have problems when she was 13. She'll have her age next to the date, so you know the times these things are._**

**_They're not all from the same diary. Some are from the diary she had before Naraku, some are from the one she got after meeting Inuyasha. Pay attention to her ages. It'll help you understand this more._**

**Best of You  
**Chapter 15: New Life

Inuyasha likes to protect me. He stays on the couch every night - he doesn't want the temptation of being in the same bed with me - and will bolt in the door if he hears me crying. That's the biggest reason I have for him loving me. When I do have my nightmares again, he cuddles me until I'm asleep again.

And, when I fall back asleep. There's no more nightmares, and no more pains of the past...

- - -

**January 31st  
Age: 12**

_Mom brought home a new boyfriend today. She said his name was Naraku. He seems kinda scary, and Souta agrees with me. He acts really nice when she's around, but he gives us mean looks when she leaves. I don't think that he's a good person. I've tried to tell mom, but she says I'm paranoid..._

_I'll have to see what that word means._

_Ah, here it is. The dictionary says something... It basically means that I'm afraid that everything will go wrong. Well, I guess I am. I'm always afraid of Souta falling off his bike and hurting himself. I should try to trust Naraku. He can't be too bad if mom trusts him._

**August 11th  
Age: Just turned 13 yesterday**

_Naraku **is** mean. Mom was at work today, and he knew that she wouldn't be home until seven. That's when she's always home. He used the spare keys that she hid under the cat statue. He let himself in, and came upstairs. I was doing homework at my desk, and Souta was doing his homework on my bed. Anyway..._

_Naraku came up the stairs. When Souta and I heard the creaky floorboard, we both looked at each other. We thought mom was home really early, but Naraku came in my room instead. I looked at him and asked why he was here when mom wouldn't be home for a few more hours. He said that he was here for us. Souta and I knew something was wrong at that point._

_He started to yell at us to bow to him and other wierd stuff at first. We didn't understand what he was saying, because his words were all mixing together. When we didn't understand, he started to hit me. I cried, and Souta tried to protect me. When he almost hit Souta, I kicked him in the crotch. Souta said that it must've hurt a lot more than it looked like, because Naraku doubled back and started crying._

_Souta and I started to run out, but Naraku caught up with us. He started to hurt us. I got most of it, since I took most of Souta's beating. He stopped an hour before mom was going to be back. He told us to shower and come up with lies on why we had bruises. We did, because we were scared of what woudl happen if we didn't._

_When mom got home, we watched her come in. She made out with Naraku (yuck!), then took something from him. It was a white stick thing. It was really small, and she lit it on fire. Then she started smoking it the way that we see grown-ups smoking cigarettes. After she got halfway through with it, she was lying on the couch with sweat on her body. She didn't even know that anyone was there, and she made no sense with what she was saying..._

**June 16th  
Age: 15**

_Souta's birthday is today. If I can get out of here fast enough, I'm going to visit his grave. And mom's grave too..._

_I guess it's been a long time since I wrote. It's hard for me to find the time or energy now. Naraku is now my legal guardian. I don't think that he's being much of a guard. He doesn't protect me from anything. He just brings pain to me. He reminds me of a mercenary that they taught about in history classes..._

_Well, Souta died around four months after Naraku started to hurt us. Mom started getting so drugged, she wouldn't be able to function without the crap. Naraku, as it turns out, was a drug dealer. He got mom hooked enough to where he could beat us in front of her, and she wouldn't even know it. He killed Souta... Wait, I mentioned that, didn't I?_

_My memory is horrible nowadays. I'm passing my classes (somehow), but I can't remember half the things that are said. I feel like a robot. I just do as I'm told without even thinking about it..._

_Mom overdosed on the drugs and died a month (give or take a few days) after Souta did. Naraku claims that he got custody of me. Since I have no other living relatives, they had no choice but to believe him. I guess this is just the way life works out for me. It's becoming normal to get bad luck._

_I told Miroku why I wasn't interested in dating boys. He asked about it today during lunch. I told him that the best parts of me had been taken. Even though that's an understatement. They have been jerked away from me and dangled above my head, so I'll always remember the parts that I'll never get back._

_Like my virginity. My knowledge. Not every fifteen-year-old girl experiences the torture that I go thruogh. The worst things they deal with consist of missing a JC Penny's Sale. My worst things are him coming home with a hardon._

_A lot of fifteen year olds don't go home and know they're about to get raped. I guess I'm just different. I'm forced to be different, and I'm forced to be in pain. After all... How happy can you be when someone's jerked away the best of you and you're unable to get it back? Or at least pretend that you have it..._

**September 8th  
Age: 28**

_I'm going to have a baby soon. I just got my cast off a little while ago, and Inuyasha and I have already done 'it'. Things feel a lot different when a man isn't forcing himself on me. It feels like forever ago that I was being beaten. Yet, when Inuyasha and I were together like that, it felt like yesterday that I had lost my virginity to the bastard in my nightmares._

_Inuyasha kept telling me that it was okay. That even though I'm not pure, he doesn't mind. It's not my choice that I'm ruined this way. It's not my choice that I'm scarred with these memories. Well, I guses he's right. It just feels horrible when my mind keeps taunting me by saying that it IS my fault._

_Well, Inuyasha is out getting the pregnancy test. I offered to go with him, but he refused. He said that I was probably still too stressed from the memories that the - ahem - sex brought me. He said it a little rougher, though. He said something along the lines of "You're probably still remembering when that bastard fucked you, since I just did."_

_He's not normally that harsh, but I've been morose the past few days. I'm trying to get over the memories of being forced into things like that, and I'm sure that Inuyasha's tired of hearing it.I probably deserved those words._

_But, I should stop writing. If I write too much, he'll take notice. Then he'll steal my keys and diary again..._

_Just incase you're wondering, I'm not his patient anymore. Inuyasha stopped charging me for the visits since weeks five. Week five is when we started to get closer. At that point, he knew that he could get in trouble for it. He didn't want to get in trouble and be forbidden to help me. So, he did it in his free time._

_That's what he told me a month after having my cast on. I guess that explains why he started having evening sessions with me..._

_Here's something that I should read when I start remembering things again...  
Even though life can get hard an unfair, you have to push through. I know, from experience, that ther ecan be times where you pray to die each night, but wake up in a healthy body. I understand the agony of it. But, that's not what you're intended to go thruogh. Even though there are hard times, try to rememebr that there will be good times. It never seems like you'll go up when you're down, and it never seems like you can get down when you're up. Even though you may have hard times where you can't imagine things getting better, just keep trying._

_I did, and that's how I got my happy ending. Well, I hope it's a happy ending. Having experience being this happy again, I'm not sure if I could handle another massive downfall..._

* * *

Sequal for **Best of You**...  
_It's hard to imagine things ever coming up when you're down, and vice verse. That's what Kagome Higurashi told herself years ago. Now she's stuck on the bottom, once again. Even though she has to tell herself that things will get better, she highly doubts that they can. The best things to her have been jerked away, once again, and dangled above her head to taunt her.  
_**Title: Best of Us**

Look for it soon! Add me to your author alerts list to find out when I'll have this story out. Hope you all will read it!

* * *

It's so hard for me to believe that this is really done. I spent a week or two typing it up, and it's finished! I'm sure it's taken much longer just to post everything.The previous thing is for a **SEQUAL, NOT ANOTHER CHAPTER! **Keep that in mind.I'm done working on the plot, and I've already started typingit up. I'm sure the first chapter is done by the time I post this... Bye bye! 

FYI: I'm working on the fourth chapter of the sequal right now. I probably won't post it until I'm done with the sixth or seventh, just so I can be ahead of you all. I hope that you all will read the sequal. Unlike my other attempted sequals (that were deleted), this one is focused on Inuyasha and Kagome still...

I've talked too much. But, please, read it. It'll be good, yet sad. My stories focus on sadness. It keeps me happen and reminds me that I have no reason to be depressed... yet.

**- Bipolar Tangerine**


	16. Sequal Information

For those of you who are interested in the sequal, this note is for you.

I have posted the sequal now, and I hope you'll read it. If you'd like to see it, but don't know how, then you can just follow these instructions. Hopefully, they're accurate.

First, go to where it says the author's name. In my case, the name is "The Lonely Bird". Once you've clicked on that, scroll down. A list of stories that I've written are there.

**The title of the sequal is  
_The Best of Us_**

So, I hope you'll read it. I look forward to getting reviews from the same people who reviewed here.


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